The Lidor Windmill
Medium
Etching on cream laid Japanese paper
Dimensions
Image/plate: 17.2 × 27.2 cm (6 13/16 × 10 3/4 in.); Sheet: 22.8 × 32.4 cm (9 × 12 13/16 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
74751
Art Historical Context
Louis Auguste Lepère's *The Lidor Windmill (1910) captures the timeless charm of a rural windmill, likely inspired by the iconic structures of northern Europe. A master French printmaker (1849–1918), Lepère was celebrated for his detailed etchings of architecture and landscapes, blending Realism with a keen eye for atmospheric light and texture. Created during the Belle Époque this work reflects the era's fascination with pastoral scenes amid rapid industrialization, evoking nostalgia for traditional countryside life. Rendered as an etching on luxurious cream laid Japanese paper, the print sh...
About the Artist
Louis Auguste Lepère · 1849–1918
Louis-Auguste Lepère (1849–1918) was born in Paris on November 30 to the sculptor François Lepère, immersing him early in the artistic world. At age thirteen, he apprenticed in the studio of the English wood engraver Joseph Burn-Smeeton, training there from 1862 to 1867, and later attended drawing courses under Horace Lecoq de Boisbaudran at the Petite École (now École nationale supérieure des art...