Artwork Page for A Selection of Twenty of the Most Picturesque Views in Paris: View of Pont de la Tournelle & Notre Dame taken from the Arsenal

Details / Information for A Selection of Twenty of the Most Picturesque Views in Paris: View of Pont de la Tournelle & Notre Dame taken from the Arsenal

A Selection of Twenty of the Most Picturesque Views in Paris: View of Pont de la Tournelle & Notre Dame taken from the Arsenal

1802

Thomas Girtin

(British, 1775–1802)
aquatint by

Frederick Christian Lewis

(British, 1779–1856)
Culture
England, 19th century
Medium
softground etching and aquatint printed in brown
Support
Mounted on board
Measurements
Sheet: 19.9 x 48.7 cm (7 13/16 x 19 3/16 in.); Image: 15.1 x 44.5 cm (5 15/16 x 17 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of John Bonebrake 2006.243
Catalogue raisonné
Abbey 102, 11 without letters
Impression
early proof
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Girtin, along with his rival J. M. W. Turner, extended the technical possibilities of watercolor and in doing so demonstrated that watercolors could have the visual impact of oils. His reduction of landscape to simple and monumental forms, his panoramic compositions, and his sensitivity to natural effects, such as cloud formations, influenced subsequent generations of watercolor painters. Anxious to take advantage of the Peace of Amiens (October 1, 1801), Girtin went to Paris to see the artistic treasures brought back from Italy by Napoleon and installed in the Louvre. He made graphite sketches of the city and its environs and upon his return to London made etchings based on his drawings. Girtin died of tuberculosis shortly thereafter, and the series was published by his widow and brother.
A horizontally oriented brown etching depicts a wide river. A multi-arched bridge stretches across the center, leading toward a cathedral with twin square towers. Densely packed buildings line the riverbanks, their forms defined by thin, precise outlines. In the foreground, a low boat rests near a jagged, shadowed shore while sketchy, horizontal strokes ripple the water. Faint, diagonal washes suggest a hazy, cloud-filled sky above the cityscape.

A Selection of Twenty of the Most Picturesque Views in Paris: View of Pont de la Tournelle & Notre Dame taken from the Arsenal

1802

Thomas Girtin, Frederick Christian Lewis

(British, 1775–1802), (British, 1779–1856)
England, 19th century

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