|
|
19. Charles Meryon (1821-1868) Le Ministère de la Marine
Etching, 1865, from Eaux-Fortes sur Paris, 166 x 142 mm., Delteil/Wright 45 v/vii. Fine, dark impression, before the title, on white, laid chine volant with good margins; a few soft creases from previous mounting. Perhaps only Meryon, having decided to etch an image of what was then the huge Marine Ministry building, would choose to go around the corner and etch only the far end of it. Certainly only Meryon, in etching such an image, would decide to populate the sky with fantastic sea creatures, spearmen, horse-drawn chariots and the like. This was well before the age of Surrealism. He probably saw those things in the sky with his own two eyes, as well as he saw the buildings and the people on the ground, and, clearly, the man was mad. But we knew that already. We also know that he was one of the greatest etchers in history and when you see one of his prints, preferably in an impression before the mass-printed published edition, it speaks to you. |
|
|
|