Artwork
La Falaise: Baie de Saint-Malo (The Cliff: Saint-Malo Bay)
La Falaise: Baie de Saint-Malo (The Cliff: Saint-Malo Bay) is an ink print by the Impressionist artist Félix-Hilaire Buhot. It dates from 1888 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:lower center below plate mark in graphite: 2eme Etat - (tiré à vingt (not deciphered) épreuves); lower right below plate mark in graphite: Felix Buhot; by later hand, lower left verso in graphite: 86464
About this work
Overview
Félix‑Hilaire Buhot’s print La Falaise: Baie de Saint‑Malo, executed in 1888, depicts a rugged coastal scene where sheer cliffs plunge into churning waters. Rendered in gray‑green on the central plate and black on a marginal plate, the work measures the dramatic interaction of rock, sea, and sky, with distant vessels barely discernible on the horizon.
Subject & Meaning
The composition presents a stark shoreline, its jagged cliffs framing a restless sea whose waves batter the stone. The sparse sky and isolated ships convey a sense of solitude and the enduring power of nature, inviting contemplation of humanity’s modest presence against an immutable landscape.
Technique & Style
Buhot combined heliogravure, etching, drypoint, roulette and aquatint to achieve a layered tonal range. Scratched lines from the drypoint plate generate sharp, textured edges, while smooth aquatint washes provide atmospheric depth. The juxtaposition of gray‑green tones in the central area with stark black margins accentuates contrast and reinforces the print’s gritty, sketch‑like quality.
History & Provenance
Created in the late nineteenth century, the print reflects Buhot’s interest in maritime subjects and his experimentation with mixed intaglio processes. While specific ownership records are limited, the work remains part of the artist’s oeuvre that documents French coastal scenery during a period of growing interest in atmospheric printmaking.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
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