Also known as La Tempête, The Storm is a commissioned work of art currently on display at New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This painting reminds us of another one called “Springtime” that Cot made in 1870. After it was shown at the Salon in 1873 and became very successful, a guy named John Wolfe bought it. Then, his cousin Catharine Lorillard Wolfe bought it in 1880. Both paintings are about the same size and show young couples. People think they’re connected because the success of “Springtime” inspired the second painting.
In 1880, when Cot’s painting was displayed at Safa’s House, people were guessing what it was about. Some thought it was related to a book called “Paul et Virginie,” which came out in 1788. Others thought it was about a story called “Daphnis and Chloe” from the fourth century. They got the idea from a part in the painting where a couple is running from the rain and covered by a flowing cloth, just like a famous scene in “Paul et Virginie.”
Read more about “The Storm” here.
Read more about Pierre Auguste Cot here.
