Artwork
Le Marché aux Pommes, No. 1
Le Marché aux Pommes, No. 1 is a print by the Impressionist artist Auguste Louis Lepère. It dates from 1890 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
- Accession no.
- 1921.1322
- Credit line
- Gift of Leonard C. Hanna Jr.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1890 by French artist Auguste Louis Lepère, Le Marché aux Pommes, No. 1 is a wood‑engraved print that captures a bustling riverside market. The work belongs to the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art and exemplifies Lepère’s interest in everyday urban scenes rendered through the graphic medium.
Subject & Meaning
The composition presents a lively market along a waterway: a woman in a long coat stands beside a cart laden with apples, a child reaches for fruit, and boats are moored nearby. Figures move between stalls and conversation, suggesting a snapshot of ordinary commercial activity in a 19th‑century French town.
Technique & Style
Lepère employs a loose, sketch‑like line that conveys immediacy, as if the scene were drawn from memory or on the spot. The wood‑engraving technique allows for fine tonal variation while retaining the rapid, gestural quality of a quick study, linking the work to contemporary explorations of movement and light.
History & Provenance
The print was produced during Lepère’s period of renewed interest in wood engraving, a medium he helped revive across Europe. After its creation, the work entered private collections before being acquired by the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it remains on view as part of the museum’s print and graphic arts holdings.
Artist & collection
Artist
Louis-Auguste Lepère (30 November 1849 – 20 November 1918) was a French painter and etcher. Lepère is also considered a leader in the creative revival of wood engraving in Europe.
