With a fine sense of atmosphere, Torsleff nuances the bluish colour of the sky and the sea by adding white. In this way, August Torsleff manages to capture the light conditions characteristic of Scandinavia. Here the light is usually clearer and brighter than we know from depictions of motifs in northern or southern Europe. This is also expressed in the colouring of paintings by Scandinavian painters such as Peter Ilsted, Peder Mönsted or Harald and Agnes Slott-Möller. What is remarkable in these paintings is that despite the predominant colour blue, which is perceived as cold, the colours of the Scandinavian painters appeared warm and the motifs cheerful, while being surrounded by a very specific freshness. We can also observe this painterly phenomenon in our painting Beach near Skagen. Skagen is the northernmost town in Denmark, situated at the northern tip of Jutland. Particularly attractive here are the long sandy beaches and the largest shifting sand dunes in Denmark, which are located south of the harbour town. Obviously, this coastal landscape inspired August Torsleff. In general, Skagen is considered a picturesque area that attracted numerous landscape painters, especially in the 1880s and 1819s.