Pair of 19th Century Dutch harbourside paintings by Hörde

Each of the paintings in this pendant pair depicts a fisherman on a harbour beachside accompanied by his wife. In one painting, the female figure is seated with a smile while the fisherman leans against a moored boat smoking a pipe. In the background, the water is calm, the sky red with sunset light, and seabirds fly by the still surface of the sea. In the second painting, the fisherman sits and smokes while his wife stands, her troubled expression turned towards her husband. The water is stormy and the sky clouded grey, omens of an incoming storm that is forcing ships to harbour. Both pictures are finely painted, delicate brushstrokes employed by the artist to render convincing portrayals of seaside settings.

One signed lower left, the other lower right 'F. Hörde'. Both pictures include a label to the reverse on the stretcher inscribed on one 'No. 2667 / Holland / Strand scene' and the other 'No. 2668 / Holland / Strand scene'.