Cathedral from Corso Francesco, Milan

1857
Image: 35.9 x 26.8 cm (14 1/8 x 10 9/16 in.); Matted: 66 x 55.9 cm (26 x 22 in.)
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location: not on view

Download, Print and Share

Description

While little is known of the life of the Parisian amateur photographer Léon Gérard, his photographs give some indication as to his travels. In 1857 he visited Nuremberg, Bamberg, the Rhine Valley, Switzerland, northern Italy and Loire-et-Cher in France. Working with waxed paper negatives and albumen prints, he produced images with a sfumato effect, prefiguring the pictorialists. In Cathedral from Corso Francesco, Milan, we are presented with the bustle of a busy street leading to the marvelous late Gothic Milan Cathedral, which here shimmers in an effervescence and almost disappears before the eye. Exhibiting his travel photographs in 1861, Gérard was praised by the eminent art critic Ernst Lacan for creating works which "distinguish themselves by a harmonious aspect, a sharpness of detail that stops just short of being cold, a transparency of tone that allows one to peer into areas of deepest shadow, and skillfully rendered aerial perspective."
Cathedral from Corso Francesco, Milan

Cathedral from Corso Francesco, Milan

1857

Léon Gérard

(French)
France, 19th century

Visually Similar Artworks

Contact us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, a detail image, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.