Claude-Joseph Vernet (17141789), Segundo Vernet, Engraved by N. Ozanne, The Pleasures of Fishing, 1800s, Wood & Paper

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According to Claude-Joseph Vernet (1714–1789), engraved by Nicolas-Marie Ozanne (1728–1811). The composition depicts a bustling fishing scene in an idealized … Read more According to Claude-Joseph Vernet (1714–1789), engraved by Nicolas-Marie Ozanne (1728–1811). The composition depicts a bustling fishing scene in an idealized fortified port. In the foreground, a group of elegantly dressed figures stand among nets, baskets, ropes, and small boats, while a fisherman retrieves a trap or basket from the water. To the right, another figure fishes from the shore. The central plane is dominated by a large three-masted ship, depicted with careful attention to the structure of the hull, sails, and rigging. Around it appear small boats, dockworkers, pilings, and maritime installations. Two defensive towers frame the entrance to the port, while a small rocky elevation encloses the perspective in the background. The scene combines the professional activity of the fishermen with the presence of aristocratic or bourgeois figures, presenting fishing simultaneously as work and entertainment. This duality explains the title Les Plaisirs de la Pêche – “The Pleasures of Fishing”. Identified in the lower right margin with the inscription “N. Ozanne” and titled in the center. The composition is documented as engraved by Nicolas-Marie Ozanne and is related to the tradition of Claude-Joseph Vernet's seascapes. Artistic style - The work is part of the 18th-century French maritime landscape, in a transitional language between late Rococo and Neoclassicism. It presents characteristics associated with Vernet's seascapes: idealized Mediterranean port; balance between landscape, architecture and figures; meticulous representation of ships; combination of maritime work and aristocratic leisure; theatrical organization of planes; serene and picturesque atmosphere; simultaneously documentary and decorative interest. It can also be considered an early manifestation of pre-Romantic sensibility, due to the prominence attributed to the maritime landscape and the relationship between human figures and the natural environment. Frame - Presented in a reddish wooden frame, of Empire inspiration, with black quadrangular corners ornamented by circular applications in gilded metal. The frame may be from the 19th century or of later production in the same style. Origin: France. Period: late 18th/early 19th century. Style: French maritime landscape, transitional between late Rococo and Neoclassicism, in the taste of Claude-Joseph Vernet. Material: paper and color pigments. Technique: colored print on paper. Dimensions without frame: 32 × 39 cm. Dimensions with frame: 42 × 51 cm. See less