Honfleur in Fog

Honfleur in Fog shows the harbour of this Normandy town swallowed by mist. Vallotton, a Swiss-born painter who became a French citizen, first discovered Honfleur in the summer of 1901 and returned to it regularly from 1909 on, so the town became part of his view of the northern French coast. The fog dissolves the slate roofs and wraps the harbour in an almost even atmosphere, an effect that moves the scene away from documentary sharpness. The picture was made in the studio from a series of sketches of the landscape, suggesting a process of synthesis rather than painting on the spot. Its soft pastel tones and calm mood set it apart from much of the artist's output, which leans toward violent subjects and sharp contrasts. For this reason it is generally regarded as an unusual work within his career. It entered the collection of the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nancy in 1965, through a bequest from the widow of the patron Henri Galilée.

Painter

Félix Vallotton

Date

1911

Medium

oil paint, canvas

Dimensions

82 × 88 cm

Museum

Museum of Fine Arts of Nancy, Nancy

Genre

cityscape

Depicts

Honfleur, fog

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