When I first came across the work of German painter Fredinand Keller, who was active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, I was immediately struck by the obvious influence of Swiss Symbolist Arnold Böcklin.

Oddly, in what scant biographical information I can find on Keller, there is rarely mention of his overt admiration for Böcklin. The influence is not only glaring for me, but one of Kellers most commonly reproduced paintings is titled Böcklin’s Tomb (images above, top).

Though there are certainly stand out exceptions, the majority of Keller’s paintings that I can find on the internet share that brooding haunted feeling, almost to a surreal extent.

I particularly enjoy the textural qualities of stone in his paintings.

Spanish Painter Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida, who was active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, loved to paint at the beach in his native city, Valencia. At times, he would set up a kind of wind and sun break with sheets strung between poles arranged as walls on three sides of his easel.

Here’s an array of Sorolla’s sun-drenched beach scenes (by no means comprehensive) to start off the summer.

These images came from a variety of sources. Rather than trying to give you links, I’ll just suggest you search Wikimedia Commons, Google or Bing images.

While in most places along both coasts of the U.S., people say they’re “going to the beach”, here in the Philadelphia area, going to the beaches in New Jersey is called “going down the shore”. It’s a Jersey thing.

Either way, happy Summer Solstice!