The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 26, 2024

Fountain of Notre-Dame at Saint-Brieuc, Brittany

Fountain of Notre-Dame at Saint-Brieuc, Brittany

c. 1853
(French, 1811–1882)
Image: 32.2 x 26.1 cm (12 11/16 x 10 1/4 in.); Paper: 34.6 x 26.8 cm (13 5/8 x 10 9/16 in.); Matted: 50.8 x 40.6 cm (20 x 16 in.)
Location: not on view

Description

In the early 1850s, Robert made a series of photographs that would be copied in lithography by Emile van Marcke, an accomplished artist who worked at the Sèvres factory with Robert at this time. Robert’s photographic journey captured seven sites—all featuring medieval architecture—in a small section along the northern coast of Brittany. For this picturesque view, he included the entire building, a small 15th-century Gothic pavilion erected over the fountain of Notre-Dame of Saint-Brieuc and whose square façade was positioned on a slight diagonal. Robert provided a sense of place by including a portion of the 19th-century chapel behind it, as well as flanking trees and a path leading out of the composition. For this reason, he may have also added a seated woman, dressed in traditional Breton costume, under the frontal arch. Due to the required length of exposure, the movement of the trees was recorded which, along with broad areas of bright light and dark shadows, provides a strong sense of atmosphere.
  • Jules-Pierre-Michel Diéterle family
    André Jammes
    Jules-Pierre-Michel Diéterle family; André Jammes
  • Cleveland Museum of Art, Tom E Hinson. Catalogue of Photography. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1996. Reproduced: P. 275
  • France at the Dawn of Photography. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 4, 2009-January 24, 2010).
    The Cleveland Museum of Art (10/04/2009 - 01/24/2010); "France at the Dawn of Photography"
    Drawn with Light: Pioneering French Photography from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 26-June 16, 2005).
    Cleveland, Ohio: The Cleveland Museum of Art; February 26 - June 16, 2005 . "Drawn with Light: Pioneering French Photography from the Cleveland Museum of Art".
    Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991).
    CMA 1991: Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum, June 7-September 8, 1991.
    CMA 1990: The World Seen Anew: English and French Photographs of the 1850s, June 29-August 26, 1990, no cat.
    Year in Review for 1984. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 3-May 5, 1985).
    CMA 1985: "Year in Review 1984," Bulletin, 72 (April 1985), p. 202, no. 65, repr. p. 184.
  • {{cite web|title=Fountain of Notre-Dame at Saint-Brieuc, Brittany|url=false|author=Louis-Rémy Robert|year=c. 1853|access-date=26 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1984.17