Henri Martin

Angelo Sommaruga, Paris
Private Collection, France (by descent from the above)
Acquired from the above from the present owner

The panel is sound. UV examination reveals intermittent retouching along the left edge, probably relating to previous frame rubbing. There are further spots of retouching to the sea in the left part of the composition as well as some further spots along the remaining three edges. There are some very fine lines of craquelure in the upper left quadrant. The impasto is thick and well preserved and the colours are vibrant and fresh. This work is in overall good condition.
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Imbued with a luminous and delicate light, Barques à Collioure reveals Henri Martin’s remarkable ability to distill the vibrations of sunlight and other similar atmospheric effects through a highly assured painterly technique. Within the present work, flecks of sunshine seem to dance across the waves of the port, conveying a sense of movement and dynamism. Martin bought a house in Collioure in 1923, and returned there frequently to paint over the next decades, finding the vibrant Mediterranean light a powerful source of inspiration for his work. The artist rented a studio alongside the harbor, and Barques à Collioure would have been executed within these surroundings, arguably introducing an almost plein-air quality to the scene with its immediacy and freshness.

Martin’s canvases are characteristically joyous expressions of light, color and texture.  His depictions of landscapes and architecture open a window to turn-of-the-century France animated by vivid palettes.  Jacques Martin-Ferrières, the artist's son, notes that: "Henri Martin was without contest an Impressionist and one who had the deepest sensitiveness, certainly equal to that of Monet, whom he most admired.  Their interpretation of nature is certainly, owing to their utmost sensitiveness and not through research of a technical process, a poetical evocation hued by a thousand colors which can undoubtedly be called a work of art" (Jacques Martin-Ferrières, Henri Martin, Paris, 1967, p. 35).

The present work was in the collection of the celebrated Italian writer, editor and art dealer Angelo Sommaruga.