St Paul de Vence

Alkyd on Canvas,
77 cm x 107 cm (30" x 42")
(Private Collection, Ontario)

This townscape of St Paul de Vence shows an interest in simple masses and geometry that recalls Cubism, but at the same time has a clarity, lightness, and graphic quality that suggest formal neoclassical landscapes like those of Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) and Gustave Courbet (1819-1877). The treatment of the southern French and Italian landscape by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (1796-1875) occupied a similar middle ground. Many important European artists of the 20th century, notably Marc Chagall (1887-1985), spent some time in or near St Paul de Vence, so the location is of interest to the artist as much for its artistic importance as for its landscape and classical architecture.

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