Ville d’Avray

Art Historical Context

Welcome to the National Gallery of, where *Ville d’Avray* (1876) invites you into the tranquil landscapes beloved by Jean-Baptiste-Cam Corot. This delicate etching by Maxime Lalanne reproduces one of Corot’s iconic scenes of the village near Paris, where the artist owned a home and captured nature’s quiet poetry from the 1850s onward. Corot, a master of the Barbizon school bridging Romanticism and Realism, rendered these views with soft light and atmospheric depth, evoking a sense of timeless serenity. Crafted as an etching on laid paper—a traditional medium with its characteristic chain lines visible under light—Lalanne’s print measures a modest image of 10 × 16.3 cm, perfect for intimate appreciation. Etching allowed 19th-century artists like Lalanne to translate Corot’s oil paintings into precise, reproducible lines, making fine art accessible to a wider audience during the etching revival in France. The technique’s fine burr and tonal gradations mimic Corot’s subtle brushwork, preserving the haze of foliage and distant rooftops. Generously gifted by Carol and James Goodfriend, this print in the CG-E department highlights the era’s printmaking innovation, bridging painting and graphic arts. Pause here to imagine Corot sketching en plein air—*Ville d’Avray* whispers of France’s enduring love for its countryside.