Updated November 2026 · ranked by our popularity score (searches, visits and orders for each work) · 34 works by Charles Cottet in our catalogue
In short
Of all the originals Charles Cottet left, the most famous is Box at the Opera-Comique (1887), in the collection of the Musée d'Orsay, Paris. Close behind it come In the land of the sea. Pain (1908) and Self-Portrait (1883). Our catalog holds 34 works by Charles Cottet; the gallery has kept the 34 the world admires most, each shown with its date, its museum and its story.
The artwork titled Box at the Opera-Comique is an oil on panel painting by the French artist Charles Cottet. Created in 1887, this work captures a specific social setting within a theater. The piece is currently held in the collection of the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, France.
In the land of the sea. Pain is a work by the French painter Charles Cottet. Known also by the titles Les Victimes de la mer or Au pays de la mer. Douleur, the painting was created between 1908 and 1909. It remains a significant example of the artist's engagement with the somber realities of maritime life.
This oil portrait presents a man from the chest up, positioned slightly off-center against a warm, reddish-brown background. The subject possesses light skin, reddish-brown hair, and a mustache. He wears a black silk top hat and a dark coat layered over a white high-collared shirt. Light enters from the upper left, casting soft shadows across the contours of his face and creating a sense of volume. The background contains blurred…
In Mourning, Charles Cottet presents a somber scene set against a coastal backdrop. Created about 1892, the work focuses on two figures positioned in the right foreground. They lean into one another, a gesture of shared grief that anchors the composition. The subjects are rendered in dark browns and blacks, creating a heavy contrast against the pale, desaturated teals and light blues of the sea and sky.
A man emerges from a heavy, dark atmosphere. He wears a dark beret, the fabric absorbing the dim light of a studio. His beard is thick, catching the pale glow that strikes one side of his face while leaving the other in deep shadow. This is a study of a single presence, captured in 1889. The eyes look directly forward, meeting the viewer with a serious, unblinking expression. There is…
In this 1902 oil on canvas, we find ourselves standing at eye level, mere steps away from a religious procession moving through the rural landscape of Landudec. The scene captures a communal moment of faith, where the stark, bright white of the participants' garments creates a rhythmic movement against the darker, more somber tones of the background. There is a weight to the figures, a sense of physical presence that…
A semi-circle of five women anchors the foreground, gathered around a white cloth spread upon the grass. They sit in an intimate arrangement, their presence a quiet nucleus amidst a larger religious festival. The scene captures a moment of respite during the Pardon of Sainte-Anne-la-Palud, where the private ritual of a picnic meets the public devotion of the crowd. In the distance, white tents and a gathering of people lead…
In the quiet, heavy atmosphere of a coastal interior, Mourning in Ouessant by Charles Cottet unfolds a scene of profound grief. Painted about 1903, the work captures a moment of stillness and sorrow. A woman sits alone, her presence defined by the weight of her heavy black clothing. She remains anchored in a domestic space, her posture reflecting the gravity of her loss. The air in the room feels thick…
Breton Women in Mourning is an oil on canvas painted by Charles Cottet in 1903. The work originates from the period when the artist was established within the French art scene, having been born in Le Puy-en-Velay. His career spanned several decades until his death in Paris in 1925.
In this 1899 oil on canvas, we find ourselves drawn into a dimly lit interior, a space defined by the heavy weight of silence and shadow. The composition centers upon a small, pale figure—an infant—whose presence acts as a singular point of light amidst a sea of darkness. Surrounding this central subject, a group of mourners is gathered in a tight, intimate circle. Their downward gazes and somber expressions suggest…
The Three Generations1909 · Columbus Museum of Art
12
Portrait of miss J.L.B.1906 · Museum of Fine Arts Ghent (MSK)
13
Portrait of a Woman1900 · Art Institute of Chicago
14
The Red Sails1894 · Musee des Beaux-Arts
15
Low Mass1895 · National Museum of Western Art
16
Fellah Women1894 · Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain de Strasbourg
17
In the Port1895 · Musee des Beaux-Arts
18
Old Horse in the Wasteland1898 · Ohara Museum of Art
19
The Tagus Seen from Toledo1904 · Musée des Beaux-Arts de Pau
20
View of Pont-en-Royans1905 · Bavarian State Painting Collections
21
Storm Time on the Sea1904 · Musee des Beaux-Arts
22
Fog at Belle Isle1904 · Musée Des Beaux
23
Fog1904 · Musée d'Orsay
24
Low Mass (Brittany)1902 · Petit Palais
25
Marine1903 · Musée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper
26
L1899 · Musée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper
27
God's Festival Day in PlougastelMusée Crozatier
28
Mourning, BrittanyCincinnati Art Museum
29
Lamentation des femmes de Camaret autour de la chapelle brûlée de Roch1911 · Musée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper
30
Belle-Isle1912 · National Gallery of Canada
31
AutoportraitMusée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper
32
Breton Village by The Coast (Camaret)Finnish National Gallery
33
(277 x 65 CM) (1900)
34
Les victimes de la merLe Carton Voyageur - Musée de la carte postale
The four subjects that come back most often in these originals, each with its finest example.
The 8 museums that hold the most of the paintings on this page.
| Museum | City | Works by Charles Cottet | Paintings from this list |
|---|---|---|---|
 Musée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper |
Quimper | 5 | Women of Plougastel at the Pardon of Sainte-Anne-la-Palud, Marine, L |
 Musée d'Orsay |
Paris | 3 | Box at the Opera-Comique, In the land of the sea. Pain, Fog |
 Petit Palais |
Paris | 3 | Self-portrait, Ouessant People Mourning a Dead Child, Low Mass (Brittany) |
 Musee des Beaux-Arts |
Reims | 3 | The Red Sails, In the Port, Storm Time on the Sea |
 Museum of Fine Arts Ghent (MSK) |
Ghent | 2 | Mourning in Ouessant, Portrait of miss J.L.B. |
 Harvard Art Museums |
Cambridge | 1 | Self-Portrait |
 Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe |
Carlsruhe | 1 | Mourning |
 Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp |
Antwerp | 1 | Breton Women in Mourning |
Pick a decade to see the original that defines it.
The artwork titled Box at the Opera-Comique is an oil on panel painting by the French artist Charles Cottet. Created in 1887, this work captures a specific social setting within a theater. The piece is currently held in the collection of the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, France.
In Mourning, Charles Cottet presents a somber scene set against a coastal backdrop. Created about 1892, the work focuses on two figures positioned in the right foreground. They lean into one another, a gesture of shared grief that anchors the composition. The subjects are rendered in dark browns and blacks, creating a heavy contrast against the pale, desaturated teals and light blues of the sea and sky.
In the land of the sea. Pain is a work by the French painter Charles Cottet. Known also by the titles Les Victimes de la mer or Au pays de la mer. Douleur, the painting was created between 1908 and 1909. It remains a significant example of the artist's engagement with the somber realities of maritime life.
In the hauntingly beautiful masterpiece Lamentation des femmes de Camaret autour de la chapelle brûlée de Roch, created in 1911, Charles Cottet invites the viewer into a moment of profound communal grief. The canvas captures the devastating aftermath of a fire that consumed the chapel of Roch, leaving behind only a skeletal clock tower and charred ruins to pierce the sky. This is not merely a depiction of architectural destruction,…
Box at the Opera-Comique (1887), Musée d'Orsay, Paris. In the land of the sea. Pain (1908) and Self-Portrait (1883) come next.
24 years old: Box at the Opera-Comique dates from 1887, and Charles Cottet was born in 1863.
Box at the Opera-Comique, In the land of the sea. Pain, Self-Portrait, Mourning, Self-portrait, The Corpus Christi Procession in Landudec, Women of Plougastel at the Pardon of Sainte-Anne-la-Palud, Mourning in Ouessant, Breton Women in Mourning and Ouessant People Mourning a Dead Child. The ranking above gives each one's year and museum.
Our catalog holds 34 works by Charles Cottet, dated from 1883 to 1912.
Mostly in Musée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper (Quimper), Musée d'Orsay (Paris) and Petit Palais (Paris). The museum table above lists them all.
In 1900s: 15 of the 34 works on this page were made then, In the land of the sea. Pain among them.
On this page, the earliest is Self-Portrait (1883) and the latest Belle-Isle (1912).
People (6), Woman (4) and Dark tones (3), across the 34 works on this page.
Oil On Canvas, for 9 of the 34 works on this page.
Post-impressionism, judging by the originals on this page.
Women of Plougastel at the Pardon of Sainte-Anne-la-Palud, Marine and L: the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper, Quimper holds 5 of the works on this page.
