Moonlit Beach Scene
The multitalented Samuel Colman was a noted American landscape painter, interior designer, and artistic partner of Louis Comfort Tiffany. The ambitious and atmospheric Moonlit Beach Scene, created in 1917 when Colman was 85 years old, is an interesting example of his late work, notable for his bold use of pastel on black paper to evoke the glowing night sky and shimmering water.
The pastel is housed in an Aesthetic Movement-style gilded frame decorated with Orientalist motifs that are suggestive of Tiffany and Colman’s interior-design schemes. The pastel and frame form a complete decorative ensemble that represents Colman’s artistic interests, his important relationship with Tiffany, and their mutual approach to creating Aesthetic interiors inspired by eclectic cosmopolitan sources.
The pastel is housed in an Aesthetic Movement-style gilded frame decorated with Orientalist motifs that are suggestive of Tiffany and Colman’s interior-design schemes. The pastel and frame form a complete decorative ensemble that represents Colman’s artistic interests, his important relationship with Tiffany, and their mutual approach to creating Aesthetic interiors inspired by eclectic cosmopolitan sources.
Artwork Details
- Title: Moonlit Beach Scene
- Artist: Samuel Colman (American, Portland, Maine 1832–1920 New York)
- Date: 1917
- Culture: American
- Medium: Pastel on black paper
- Dimensions: 15 × 17 3/4 in. (38.1 × 45.1 cm)
Framed: 20 1/4 × 23 in. (51.4 × 58.4 cm) - Credit Line: Friends of the American Wing Fund, 2018
- Object Number: 2018.366
- Curatorial Department: The American Wing
More Artwork
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.