Label Text
Corot's cool, serene, and luminous landscapes mark the mid-point of the 19th century painting. Pure landcape painting was in low regard; the few landscape paintings that were generally accepted contained small figure groups, of historical or mythological scenes, as their justification. Yet Corot was naturally suited for landscape portayal, enjoying as he did the quiet contemplation of nature.
Corot's great distinction lay in his unique personal vision. The landscape scene, through Corot's eyes, was transformed into a single, contained movement in time; a moment of such complete, serene communion with nature that it became fixed forever in an unforgettable image. The tiny motionless figures that usually appear in these landscapes tend to symbolize the complete human relation with the natural setting. And the carefully proportioned, balanced compositions lend to the harmony and serenity of mood.
This view of Ville d"Avray, looking toward the buildings of Cabassus, is in Corot's later "feathery" style, which became highly successful. The firmly structured buildings in the distance, and the solid hills beyond, are reminiscent of his earlier style. Source: Bulletin, April 1963.
Exhibition History"JEAN-BAPTISTE CAMILLE COROT (Retrospective)", Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris, Feb. 27 - May 27, 1996, (circulated to: National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, June 20 - Sept. 22, 1996; Metropolitan Museum of Art, N. Y., Oct. 21, 1996 - Jan. 19, 1997)
"Corot to Manet: The Rise of Landscape Painting in France," The Currier Gallery of Art, Manchester, NH, Jan. 27 - April 29, 1991, (circulated to: IMB Gallery of Science and Art, New York, N. Y., July 30 - Sept. 28, 1991; Dallas Museum of Art, Nov. 3, 1991 - Jan. 5, 1992; High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA, Jan. 28 - March 29, 1992)
"Camille Corot Exhibition," Odakyu Grand Gallery, Tokyo, Sept. 8 - Oct. 4, 1989; Navio Museum of Art, Osaka, Oct. 15 - Nov. 15, 1989;The Miyazaki Prefectural Museum, Miyazaki: Nov. 23, 1989 - Jan. 8, 1990; Sogo Museum of Art, Yokohama: Jan. 18 - Feb. 25, 1990
"Retrospective of a Gallery - Twenty Years," Hirschl and Adler Galleries, N.Y., Nov. 7 - Dec. 1, 1973
"Corot: An Exhibition of His Paintings and Graphic Works," Art Institute of Chicago, 1960
Gallerie Georges Petit, Paris, 1887
Published ReferencesAlfred Robault, L'OEUVRE DE COROT, CATALOGUE RAISONNE ET ILLUSTRE, Paris, Vol. II, 1905, no.917, ill.
Gabriel P. Weisberg, JEAN BAPTISTE CAMILLE COROT, (in conjunction with exhibition), Art Life LTD., Paris, France, Color ill. pl.30
"Corot: An Exhibition of His Paintings and Graphic Works," Art Institute of Chicago, 1960, cat. ref. p.23, ill. pl.80
DES MOINES SUNDAY REGISTER, Mar. 31, 1963, ill.
DMAC Bulletin, Apr. 1963, cover ill.
TODAY'S ART, Aug. 1, 1963, (ref. to DMAC purchase)
MIDWEST MUSEUMS QUARTERLY, Vol. 23, no. 4, Fall 1963, ill. fig. no.9, p.9
DES MOINES SUNDAY REGISTER, Oct. 6, 1963, color ill.
SUPPLEMENT OF THE GAZETTE DES BEAUX ARTS, Feb. 1964, cat. no.223, ill. p.67
"Retrospective of a Gallery - Twenty Years," Hirschl and Adler Galleries, N. Y., 1973, ill. pl.26
THE NATHAN EMORY COFFIN COLLECTION, a portfolio of fifty selections from the collection, published in 1981 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Nathan Emory Coffin, b/w ill.
DES MOINES ART CENTER: SELECTED PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES AND WORKS ON PAPER, Des Moines Art Center, 1985, ref. p.87, color ill. p.86
Kermit S. Champa, COROT TO MANET: THE RISE OF LANDSCAPE PAINTING IN FRANCE, The Currier Gallery of Art, Manchester, NH, 1991, cat. no.24, color ill. p.125
Yoichiro Ide, ASAHI GRAPH MAGAZINE (VOLUME COROT), ASAHI SHIMBUN, Feb. 1992, color ill. p.32
Gary Tinterow, Michael Pantazzi & Vincent Pomarede, "Corot," Metropolitan Museum of Art, N. Y., 1996, ill. p.229
Florian Rodary, COROT, LES TABLEAUX D'UNE EXPOSITION, Les Journal Des Arts, Paris, France, 1996 (24 pg. color album presenting 16 paintings in the exhibition)
DMAC News, Mar./Apr. 1996, p.6
AN UNCOMMON VISION: THE DES MOINES ART CENTER, Des Moines Art Center, 1998, ref. p.87, color ill. p.86
COROT, NATURE, EMOTION, SOUVENIR, A.A.V.V., Fundación Colección Tyssen-Bornemisza, 2005, ref. pg.261
Exhibition History"JEAN-BAPTISTE CAMILLE COROT (Retrospective)", Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris, Feb. 27 - May 27, 1996, (circulated to: National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, June 20 - Sept. 22, 1996; Metropolitan Museum of Art, N. Y., Oct. 21, 1996 - Jan. 19, 1997)
"Corot to Manet: The Rise of Landscape Painting in France," The Currier Gallery of Art, Manchester, NH, Jan. 27 - April 29, 1991, (circulated to: IMB Gallery of Science and Art, New York, N. Y., July 30 - Sept. 28, 1991; Dallas Museum of Art, Nov. 3, 1991 - Jan. 5, 1992; High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA, Jan. 28 - March 29, 1992)
"Camille Corot Exhibition," Odakyu Grand Gallery, Tokyo, Sept. 8 - Oct. 4, 1989; Navio Museum of Art, Osaka, Oct. 15 - Nov. 15, 1989;The Miyazaki Prefectural Museum, Miyazaki: Nov. 23, 1989 - Jan. 8, 1990; Sogo Museum of Art, Yokohama: Jan. 18 - Feb. 25, 1990
"Retrospective of a Gallery - Twenty Years," Hirschl and Adler Galleries, N.Y., Nov. 7 - Dec. 1, 1973
"Corot: An Exhibition of His Paintings and Graphic Works," Art Institute of Chicago, 1960
Gallerie Georges Petit, Paris, 1887
Published ReferencesAlfred Robault, L'OEUVRE DE COROT, CATALOGUE RAISONNE ET ILLUSTRE, Paris, Vol. II, 1905, no.917, ill.
Gabriel P. Weisberg, JEAN BAPTISTE CAMILLE COROT, (in conjunction with exhibition), Art Life LTD., Paris, France, Color ill. pl.30
"Corot: An Exhibition of His Paintings and Graphic Works," Art Institute of Chicago, 1960, cat. ref. p.23, ill. pl.80
DES MOINES SUNDAY REGISTER, Mar. 31, 1963, ill.
DMAC Bulletin, Apr. 1963, cover ill.
TODAY'S ART, Aug. 1, 1963, (ref. to DMAC purchase)
MIDWEST MUSEUMS QUARTERLY, Vol. 23, no. 4, Fall 1963, ill. fig. no.9, p.9
DES MOINES SUNDAY REGISTER, Oct. 6, 1963, color ill.
SUPPLEMENT OF THE GAZETTE DES BEAUX ARTS, Feb. 1964, cat. no.223, ill. p.67
"Retrospective of a Gallery - Twenty Years," Hirschl and Adler Galleries, N. Y., 1973, ill. pl.26
THE NATHAN EMORY COFFIN COLLECTION, a portfolio of fifty selections from the collection, published in 1981 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Nathan Emory Coffin, b/w ill.
DES MOINES ART CENTER: SELECTED PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES AND WORKS ON PAPER, Des Moines Art Center, 1985, ref. p.87, color ill. p.86
Kermit S. Champa, COROT TO MANET: THE RISE OF LANDSCAPE PAINTING IN FRANCE, The Currier Gallery of Art, Manchester, NH, 1991, cat. no.24, color ill. p.125
Yoichiro Ide, ASAHI GRAPH MAGAZINE (VOLUME COROT), ASAHI SHIMBUN, Feb. 1992, color ill. p.32
Gary Tinterow, Michael Pantazzi & Vincent Pomarede, "Corot," Metropolitan Museum of Art, N. Y., 1996, ill. p.229
Florian Rodary, COROT, LES TABLEAUX D'UNE EXPOSITION, Les Journal Des Arts, Paris, France, 1996 (24 pg. color album presenting 16 paintings in the exhibition)
DMAC News, Mar./Apr. 1996, p.6
AN UNCOMMON VISION: THE DES MOINES ART CENTER, Des Moines Art Center, 1998, ref. p.87, color ill. p.86
COROT, NATURE, EMOTION, SOUVENIR, A.A.V.V., Fundación Colección Tyssen-Bornemisza, 2005, ref. pg.261
DimensionsOverall: 18 1/4 × 21 3/4 in. (46.4 × 55.2 cm)
Accession Number 1962.20
Classificationspainting
CopyrightPublic Domain
SignedCorot (l,l oil paint)
Catalogue raisonnéRobault 917
ProvenanceArtist, France. Paul Tesse, Paris [acquired by 1881]. J.R.P.C.H. De Kuyper, The Hague [acquired by 1911]; (Collection J.R.P.C.H. de Kuyper, Frederik Muller & Co., Amsterdam, May 30, 1911, no. 19). Colonel Nathan H. Heft (1847-1915), Bridgeport, CT [acquired by 1915]; Josephine Moore Heft, Bridgeport, CT [widow of the previous, by descent, 1915]; (The American Art Association, New York, January 22, 1920, no. 66); M.H. Goldblatt, New York [purchased from the previous, 1920]. (Hirschl & Adler, N.Y., [acquired by 1959]); Des Moines Art Center [purchased from the previous, 1962]
