Sailing boats – Johan Barthold Jongkind, 1862

€975

original etching Johan Barthold Jongkind 19th century sailboats

TWO SAILING BOATS IN A DUTCH LANDSCAPE

“Les Deux Barques à Voile“, from a cahier of etchings of “Vues de Hollande” made by Johan Barthold Jongkind and published by Alfred Cadart in 1862, 2nd state (of III). Size. (plate mark) 17,7 x 21,5 cm.

Johan Barthold Jongkind (1819–1891) is a key figure in 19th-century painting and a pioneer of Impressionism. Born in the Netherlands, he spent most of his life in France, where he befriended artists such as Claude Monet, Eugène Boudin, Charles-François Daubigny, and Camille Pissarro. In addition to town views, Jongkind mainly painted coastal and river landscapes.

Jongkind belonged to a group of innovative and progressive artists in Paris and was open to new initiatives. One such initiative was the founding of a society dedicated to reviving the art of etching. While lithography had soared in popularity during the early 19th century, by the latter half it had become a banal illustration tool. Etching, by contrast, was seen as a medium in which the true hand of the artist was visible. In 1862, the publisher Alfred Cadart, together with printer Auguste Delâtre, founded the Société des Aquafortistes (Society of Etchers). Their aim was to publish albums of prints by living artists. Participants included Manet, Millet, and Jongkind. Jongkind’s first contribution was the etching Vue de la Ville de Maassluis for the 1862 edition. Later works included views of the port of Honfleur and the railway line along the harbour.

Charles Baudelaire was among the first to see Jongkind’s etchings. In 1862, he wrote an article titled “L’Eau-forte est à la mode” (Etching is in Fashion): “Jongkind has entrusted his secret dreams to paper, a remarkable abridged version of his painting; these are sketches that any lover accustomed to reading the soul of an artist – even from the quickest of scrawls – will appreciate.”

This etching reveals Jongkind’s fascination with coastal landscapes and the interplay of light and water. At the center, we see two flat-bottomed boats gliding calmly across the water, while on the left, simple cottages line the dike. The composition is enhanced by the dynamic movement of the clouded sky and the rippling water, rendered with a sparing yet confident linework. In the distance, windmills appear as silhouettes on the horizon, anchoring the scene firmly within the characteristic Dutch landscape.

Price: Euro 975,-