Painters and the Opal Coast: a whole history
The designation of Côte d'Opale of our beautiful coastline has its origin in painting and arts. In 1911, it was Édouard Lévêque, a painter from Le Touquet, who decided to call the coastline of Le Touquet in particular, and the entire coastline between Le Crotoy and Equihen-Plage, "Côte d'Opale", in homage to its particular light. Since then, the name has remained, and has earned Le Touquet the nickname of "Pearl of the Opal Coast".
At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, a great number of painters began to frequent the Opal Coast. Marine painting was particularly popular at the time, due to its striking nature, its picturesque scenes of life, the atmosphere of the ports or the many technical details of the ships. Moreover, the development of railroads made many cities accessible to painters who were then staying in their own territory. According to their pied-à-terre, these painters were nicknamed the Wissant school, the Etaples school of painters or the Berck painters.
It is the school of Wissant which initiates the movement, with the leading couple Adrien and Virginie Demont-Breton, who will welcome others like Henri Duhem, Fernand Stévenart, Marie Huhem-Sergeant, Félix Planquette and Valentine Pèpe.
Then, a year later, Etaples became a favorite place for Parisians, and more than 200 painters came to settle between 1882 and 1914, forming the Etaples School of Painters. They were French (Eugène Chigot, Henri-Eugène Le Sidaner), but also American, Australian or Scandinavian, giving the place a very particular artistic effervescence, which is partly reflected in La Maison du Port and its thirty or so works. The city is indeed very appreciated for its authenticity, its natural landscapes and its easy access by train from Paris.
For Berck, we can mention Edouard Manet, Eugène Boudin, Louis Montaigu or Charles Roussel. All this artistic enthusiasm will be partly stifled by the Great War, but has left a lasting impression on the region, and many museums still pay tribute to the famous painters of the Opal Coast. Exhibitions are also frequent, such as "Intimacy(s)" presented in 2020.
From the end of June to the end of November 2021, a first edition of the "Chemin des peintres de la Côte d'Opale" (Opal Coast Painters' Trail) is organized by the Pas-de-Calais region in order to promote the works of these painters in partnership with many communes. Whether by the sea or in natural sites, 82 large format panels will help you discover the works of the Opal Coast painters. This path also takes you to the Maison du Port départemental in Etaples, which exhibits some thirty works on the premises, and to the Château d'Hardelot.
Numerous artistic venues
The cultural and artistic dynamism is particularly present on the Opal Coast and there are many places to cultivate a taste for art. In Calais, the Musée des Beaux-Arts invites you to discover the city and its artists with the collection " Calais, d'ici et d'ailleurs " and its 150 works, some of which are by Calais artists (Louis Francia, Jeanne Thil, etc.), photographs of Calais from the beginning of the 20th century, old Flemish paintings, English watercolors or Bourdelle, Picasso, Roulland, Carpeaux...
In Touquet-Paris-Plage, the more eclectic museum exhibits Harcourt portraits, post-impressionist or abstract paintings, as well as a rich collection of modern and contemporary art. One can also admire some works of painters from the Opal Coast: Speedy Graphito, Sonia Delaunay, Marie Duhem and Eugène Chigot.
In Dunkerque, the FRAC Nord-Pas-de-Calais has existed since 1996 and offers more than 1,500 works as well as one of the largest design collections in France, while at the Cité de la dentelle et de la mode in Calais, the art of making lace is explored. In a former lace factory from the 19th century, you can appreciate the industrial past around lace, but also its impact on fashion. A gallery of exhibitions is dedicated to great designers and young creators, while the gallery of current events gives pride of place to the current scene of creation in textiles and fashion.
As for crafts, a visit to Desvres is a must. You will find there the village of Arts and Crafts, with stores, workshops, and guided tours, as well as the Ceramic Museum and its ten thematic rooms retracing all the ceramic activity of the city through the centuries. Don't miss the museum of drawing and printing in Gravelines, which allows you to understand the techniques of printing, while admiring original works.
And what about the 7th art?
It is impossible to talk about cinema on the Opal Coast without mentioning Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, shot in 2017. This film required considerable resources, with the involvement of over 2,000 extras and 450 technicians. A major operation because the economic benefits of this film are up to 5 to 7 million euros for the Dunkirk area.
For the record, the film Dunkirk was shot in climatic conditions that were not those that prevailed at the time of the event (Operation Dynamo and the rescue of nearly 330,000 men fleeing the Germans). At the time, it was the good weather that allowed such a large-scale evacuation.
The weather being changeable on our coasts, it was necessary to divert the reality somewhat. It should also be noted that the computer-generated images were limited, the director having favored shooting in the streets of Dunkirk which remained very authentic for many.
We can also mention Quand la mer monte by Yolande Moreau shot in Béthune, Quelqu'un de bien with Patrick Timsit and Welcome with Vincent Lindon, the film L'Empire with Fabrice Luchini. As for the series, one of the episodes of the very popular TF1 series HPI, to be broadcast in 2021, was partly shot in Berck, not forgetting other less recent series such as Capitaine Marleau or Les Petits meurtres d'Agatha Christie.
