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Lot Essay
“Impressionism thus takes a new flight, gathering together artists who extol its successive conquests. The event is of primary importance and deserves to interest attentive minds. “
Octave Maus, quoted in C. Lemonnier, Emile Claus, Brussels, 1908.
Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant perfectly encapsulates the luminous atmosphere of Venice at sunset. Scintillating bands of gradating colour are achieved by deftly dappled brushstrokes, radiating the full spectrum upon the water, mirroring the sky above. Looking towards Murano, the white buildings on the horizon line take on the brilliant pinks of the late sun, conveying the warmth and atmosphere of the city, thrown forward in contrast to the deep blue haze of the distance.
Emile Claus had achieved a successful following in Belgium as a realist painter, prior to visits to Paris during the late 1890s whereupon he encountered the Impressionists. Inspired by the new ideas he found there, Claus went on to develop his own brand of Luminist painting, founding the Vie et Lumière group in 1904. Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant presents an exceptional example, bought to fruition by this time in the wake of neo-Impressionism. Claus had first visited Venice in 1902 and returned in 1906 with Henri le Sidaner, to observe and paint the extraordinary setting.
Best known for his Venice scenes is perhaps Claude Monet, however Claus’s depiction of Venice predates Monet’s first encounter of the city in autumn 1908. Saint-Georges majeur au crepuscule painted by Monet on his inaugural visit, communicates a similar affinity with the subject, reinforcing Claus’s earlier impression in its structure and vibrancy. Claus has included markers in the foreground, midground and background of Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant to explore pictorial depth through the triangle between the small boats and briccole in the foreground. The relationships between the shadows on the water too are explored here in detail, with myriad reflections forming a patchwork of colourful interrelationships, revealing his technical mastery. Monet’s version appears and broader and bolder in its painterly approach. Saint-Georges majeur au crepuscule, the Monet appears fascinated by the colour relationships of the tower’s shadow and the contrasting reflections dancing upon the water which take on a dominant chromatic and compositional force in this work, exploring the relationship of the purple throughout the colour spectrum.
Whilst not exposing the abstract principles of his work as transparently as his counterpart, Claus’s Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant, is equally an immanently expressive, impressionist, painting; a carefully composed study of colour harmonics revelling in the array of atmospheric textures of the glowing curtain floating down on the day.
Octave Maus, quoted in C. Lemonnier, Emile Claus, Brussels, 1908.
Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant perfectly encapsulates the luminous atmosphere of Venice at sunset. Scintillating bands of gradating colour are achieved by deftly dappled brushstrokes, radiating the full spectrum upon the water, mirroring the sky above. Looking towards Murano, the white buildings on the horizon line take on the brilliant pinks of the late sun, conveying the warmth and atmosphere of the city, thrown forward in contrast to the deep blue haze of the distance.
Emile Claus had achieved a successful following in Belgium as a realist painter, prior to visits to Paris during the late 1890s whereupon he encountered the Impressionists. Inspired by the new ideas he found there, Claus went on to develop his own brand of Luminist painting, founding the Vie et Lumière group in 1904. Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant presents an exceptional example, bought to fruition by this time in the wake of neo-Impressionism. Claus had first visited Venice in 1902 and returned in 1906 with Henri le Sidaner, to observe and paint the extraordinary setting.
Best known for his Venice scenes is perhaps Claude Monet, however Claus’s depiction of Venice predates Monet’s first encounter of the city in autumn 1908. Saint-Georges majeur au crepuscule painted by Monet on his inaugural visit, communicates a similar affinity with the subject, reinforcing Claus’s earlier impression in its structure and vibrancy. Claus has included markers in the foreground, midground and background of Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant to explore pictorial depth through the triangle between the small boats and briccole in the foreground. The relationships between the shadows on the water too are explored here in detail, with myriad reflections forming a patchwork of colourful interrelationships, revealing his technical mastery. Monet’s version appears and broader and bolder in its painterly approach. Saint-Georges majeur au crepuscule, the Monet appears fascinated by the colour relationships of the tower’s shadow and the contrasting reflections dancing upon the water which take on a dominant chromatic and compositional force in this work, exploring the relationship of the purple throughout the colour spectrum.
Whilst not exposing the abstract principles of his work as transparently as his counterpart, Claus’s Vue sur Murano, lueur du couchant, is equally an immanently expressive, impressionist, painting; a carefully composed study of colour harmonics revelling in the array of atmospheric textures of the glowing curtain floating down on the day.