20 / 120
255
●
CAMILLE PISSARRO
Foire de Saint-Martin à Pontoise
.
Drypoint and aquatint printed in black
on cream laid paper, 1879. 119x160 mm;
4
3
/
4
x6
1
/
4
inches, full margins. Fourth state
(of 4). One of only 3 impressions in this
state, from a total of only 7 lifetime
impressions in all four states combined.
Signed, titled and inscribed “Effet de
pluie” and “No. 2 Epreuve d’artiste” in
pencil, lower margin. A brilliant, richly-
inked impression of this exceedingly
scarce print, with crisp, inky plate edges
This impression sold Kornfeld, Bern, June
1988, lot
122.Wehave found only one
other impression, unsigned, at auction in
the past 30 years.
Pissarro started working closely with Degas,
who was experimenting with and perfecting
his aquatint techniques at the time (he
was also advising Mary Cassatt), during the
late 1870s. Though he was living in
Pontoise, 20 miles northwest of Paris,
Pissarro sent proofs of his etchings to Degas
and received suggestions and critiques from
Degas in return. Degas also printed proofs
for Pissarro from the plates he brought
with him from Pontoise to Paris on visits
to the city.
On one occasion in 1879, having received
a group of prints from Pissarro, Degas
wrote,“Here are the proofs: the prevailing
blackish or rather grayish shade comes
from the zinc [plate] which is greasy in
itself and retains the printer’s black. The
plate is not smooth enough. I feel sure that
you have not the same facilities at Pontoise
[as Degas’ studio in Paris] . . . In spite of
that you must have something a bit more
polished.” He might have been referring
to proofs of this print, in which the most
heavily-inked passages stand out in a much
stronger black and the aquatint tone in the
sky is uneven. Pissarro continued to refine
his aquatint work with Degas’s tutelage
and reached a peak, producing masterful
impressionist effects with the technique, in
La Masure
, 1879 (see lot 254) and
Paysage en
long
, 1879. Delteil 21.
[20,000/30,000]