The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 30, 2023

Etchings of Paris: The Mortuary

1854

Charles Meryon

(French, 1821–1868)

France, 19th century

Etching and drypoint

Sheet: 33.7 x 29.2 cm (13 1/4 x 11 1/2 in.); Platemark: 23.1 x 20.7 cm (9 1/8 x 8 1/8 in.)

The Milton Curtiss Rose Collection in memory of Evelyn Curtiss Rose 1954.893

Catalogue raisonné: Delteil & Wright 36; Schneiderman 42

State: IV/VII; Schneiderman, state IV/VII

Location

not on view

Description

One of the greatest French etchers and an important figure in the mid-19th-century etching revival, Meryon devoted himself exclusively to drawing and printmaking by the age of 28. Continually experimenting to achieve the desired nuances of light and shadow, he developed his compositions through numerous states and printed on a variety of papers, favoring pale green for some of his most beautiful impressions. Meryon specialized in views of Paris, often recording older areas, like the morgue building dating from 1568, soon to disappear with the modernization of the city.

Exhibition history

The Cleveland Museum of Art; 8/26/01-10/28/01. "Inventive Impressions: 18th- and 19th-Century French Prints".

Generous Donors: A Tribute to The Print Club of Cleveland. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 2-August 4, 1991).

Inventive Impressions: 18th- and 19-Century French Prints. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26-October 28, 2001).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1954.893