NEW YORK, NY.- Swann Auction Galleries will present an exceptional private collection of prints by the Impressionist master Camille Pissarro at their November 3 Old Master Through Modern Prints auction.
Occupying the centre of the three-part sale, the 67-lot collection focuses on Pissarro’s (1830-1903) development of printing techniques, from early etchings in the 1860s, through his lithographs of the 1870s to his friendship with Degas and the extraordinarily productive period of the late 1870s, with aquatints and drypoints.
Subjects range from everyday rural life and landscapes to the bustle of market towns and the streets, docks and waterways of Rouen, as well as intimate portraits and character studies. Composition and technique shows the influence of earlier masters like Constable and Turner.
Known as the “Father of Impressionism,” Pissarro helped write the manifesto in 1873, along with Degas and Monet, for the formation of the Société Anonyme des Artistes, Peintres, Sculpteurs et Graveurs, marking the beginning of Impressionism. The group showed their work independently, abandoning the traditional means of exhibiting in France in formal Salons for over two centuries. For Pissarro, this was a final and definitive turning away from the establishment.
The most prolific printmaker among his Impressionist brethren, Pissarro produced nearly 200 etchings and lithographs from 1863 to 1902. From the beginning, he approached printmaking with a passionate fervour. In this sense, his master prints truly represent his artistic identity, rather than an auxiliary pursuit. Technically, he pushed the medium to its limits through his manipulation of the etching plates, becoming so enthusiastic that he purchased two of his own etching presses: a worn, second-hand model in 1891, and a proper, new press in 1894 from the master printer Eugene Delâtre.
The collection at Swann Galleries is led by two lots: an 1880 aquatint and etching, Femme vidant une brouette, depicting a peasant woman emptying a wheelbarrow. The eighth state (of 11), it once belonged to Edgar Degas. The second is a set of five colour drypoints dating to 1895-96. Each is the bon-à-tirer, or approved, proof authorizing the subsequent printing. In this case the posthumous prints are each signed by Jean Cailac, the artist who oversaw the process. The series depicts a variety of scenes, from a landscape with church and farm to bathing women tending geese (Baigneuses gardeuses d’oies) shown here. Each lot is estimated at $30,000 to $50,000.
According to Todd Weyman, Director of the Prints & Drawings Department and Vice President of Swann Galleries, “Pissarro's prints set him apart from the other Impressionists. Through an array of examples, this collection uncovers how Pissarro's printmaking endeavors elaborated on his painted work and significantly expanded the realm of Impressionist art.”
