Albert Marquet

Versoix Collection, Suisse
Sale: London, William Doyle Galleries, 15th November 1984, lot 71
Galerie de la Présidence, Paris (circa 1985)
Acquired from the above by the previous owner

Paris, Galerie de la Présidence, Albert Marquet, 1985, no. 11, illustrated in the catalogue

Jean-Claude Martinet & Guy Wildenstein, Marquet, L'Afrique du Nord, Catalogue de l'œuvre peint, Paris, 2001, no. I-132, illustrated p. 158

The canvas is not lined. There is a 1cm. line of retouching, with two further specks, to the top left corner and a nailhead-sized spot to the right of the boat in the foreground. There are pinhead-sized spots of retouching, probably to cover tackholes, to the extreme bottom left and right hand corners and the top right corner. All retouching is visible under UV light. This work is in very good condition. Colours: Overall accurate, although less green and more blue, especially in the sea.
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As soon as Albert Marquet secured an income he began to travel, exploring many ports and cities in Western Europe. In 1909, he visited Hamburg and Naples. He also made intermittent journeys throughout France and also visited Rotterdam in 1914. All the while, the artist was keenly interested in depicting in his œuvre the movement and colour of his favourite subjects: ports, harbours and rivers. During the Great War, Marquet was left largely to travel within the confines of France, travelling principally between Paris and Marseilles.

In 1920, after having recovered from poor health the previous year while working in Paris and Marseilles, Marquet embarked for Algiers in search of a warmer climate as well as new subject matter. As typified in the present work, the artist excelled at capturing the unrelenting North African light, its intensity punctuated by the minimal presence of shadows. In the present work, the thick, gestured brushstrokes of the shimmering turquoise water reflect the buildings and fishing boats.


COMP: 3K5DG_comp.tif
FIG 1, Period photograph of the port of Algiers