Trees Reflected in a Brook
1701 to 1725
Medium
pen and brown ink
Dimensions
Overall: 21.7 x 24.7 cm (8 9/16 x 9 3/4 in.) overall (mount): 31.3 x 34.6 cm (12 5/16 x 13 5/8 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund
Accession Number
1984.78.1
Art Historical Context
Claude-Joseph Vernet’s “Trees Reflected in a Brook” captures a quiet moment of nature in delicate pen and brown ink. Created between 1701 and 1725, this modest drawing—measuring just over eight by nine inches—reveals the French artist’s early sensitivity to light, water, and foliage. Vernet, later celebrated for his luminous landscapes and seascapes, here uses fine, fluid lines to suggest the gentle ripple of the brook and the soft silhouettes of trees leaning toward its surface. As a drawing rather than a finished painting, the work offers an intimate glimpse into Vernet’s process. The brown...
About the Artist
Claude-Joseph Vernet
Claude-Joseph Vernet and his direct descendants are the last representatives of the Avignon School which had provided a continuous line of artists since the 14th century. It originated at the time when Bernard de Goth, Archbishop of Bordeaux, became pope in the name of Clement V and transferred the seat of the papacy to Avignon where he established an influential artistic community. Comment on wor...