Henry Moret (12 December 1856 – 5 May 1913) was a French

Impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

painter. He was one of the artists who associated with

Paul Gauguin Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (, ; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of colour and Synthetist style that were distinct fr ...

Pont-Aven Pont-Aven (, Breton: 'River Bridge') is a commune in the Finistère department in the Brittany region in Northwestern France. In 2019, it had a population of 2,821. Demographics Inhabitants of Pont-Aven are called ''Pontavenistes'' in French ...

in Brittany. He is best known for his involvement in the Pont-Aven artist colony and his richly colored landscapes of coastal Brittany.

Early life

Moret was born in

Cherbourg Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...

, but little is known of his life until he began his military service in 1875. Jules La Villette, his commander in

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

, who first noticed his artistic talents, introduced him to Ernest Corroller, a drawing teacher and marine painter. Corroller taught him the art of landscape painting as practiced by masters such as

Corot CoRoT (French: ; English: Convection, Rotation and planetary Transits) was a space telescope mission which operated from 2006 to 2013. The mission's two objectives were to search for extrasolar planets with short orbital periods, particularly th ...

and

Courbet Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet ( , , ; 10 June 1819 – 31 December 1877) was a French painter who led the Realism movement in 19th-century French painting. Committed to painting only what he could see, he rejected academic convention and t ...

, enabling him to register at the

École des Beaux-Arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth century ...

in Paris where in 1876 he studied under Rudolf Lehmann,

Jean-Léon Gérôme Jean-Léon Gérôme (11 May 1824 – 10 January 1904) was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as academicism. His paintings were so widely reproduced that he was "arguably the world's most famous living artist by 1880." The ran ...

and later, from about 1880, under the history painter

Jean-Paul Laurens Jean-Paul Laurens (; 28 March 1838 – 23 March 1921) was a French painter and sculptor, and one of the last major exponents of the French Academic style. Biography Laurens was born in Fourquevaux and was a pupil of Léon Cogniet and Alexand ...

at the

Académie Julian The Académie Julian () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907) that was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number a ...

Career

Moret first exhibited at the

Paris Salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art ...

in 1880, presenting ''La plage de Locqueltas à marée basse; côte de Bretagne''. He maintained contacts with Corroller, often returning to Brittany. In 1888, he arrived in

which had begun to attract a number of artists including

Ernest de Chamaillard Henri Ernest Ponthier de Chamaillard, usually known as Ernest de Chamaillard, (9 December 1862, Gourlizon – 1931, Eaubonne) was a French artist, one of a group of painters who gathered in the Breton village of Pont-Aven. Biography The son of a ...

Émile Jourdan Émile Jourdan (30 July 1860, in Vannes – 29 December 1931, in Quimperlé) was a French painter who became one of the artists who gathered in the village of Pont-Aven in Brittany. Early life Son of Prosper Jourdan, a ranking customs officer, an ...

, and

Charles Laval Charles Laval (17 March 1862 – 27 April 1894) was a French painter associated with the Synthetic movement and Pont-Aven School. Laval was born in Paris, and was a contemporary and friend of Paul Gauguin and Vincent van Gogh. Gauguin crea ...

, with

playing the leading role. Moret was one of the first painters to move to nearby le Pouldu which soon became the new centre of attraction for the Pont-Aven artists. His work began to show signs of

Symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: Arts * Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism ** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries ** Russian sy ...

, probably as a result of Gauguin's influence."Henry Moret: (1856 - 1913)"
''Rehs Galleries''. Retrieved 6 May 2012. After Gauguin left the area in 1891, Moret began to develop his own style. In 1895, he established a fruitful relationship with

Paul Durand-Ruel Paul Durand-Ruel (31 October 1831, Paris – 5 February 1922, Paris) was a French art dealer associated with the Impressionists and the Barbizon School. Being the first to support artists such as Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, and Pierre-Auguste ...

who maintained a number of galleries in Paris, London and New York, with an emphasis on

Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...

. During their relationship, Moret completed over 600 paintings, many of which were exhibited in Paris and New York leading to a growing clientele for his work. Moret also exhibited seven of his Breton paintings at the

Salon des Indépendants Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...

. After 1900, Moret became more immersed in Impressionism, applying small flecks of paint to his work rather than the broad strokes favoured by the Pont-Aven artists. Increasingly he focused on landscapes where his light effects can be seen in the sunsets and storm scenes he painted around 1909. In addition to his oils for Durand-Ruel, he also completed some 800 watercolours and drawings. He died in Paris, aged 56.

Assessment

After initially painting in a rather classical manner, Moret's style developed under the influence of Gauguin and the Pont-Aven artists. As time went by, his works became increasingly Impressionistic, while revealing his love of nature. In ''Henry Moret, aquarelles et peinture 1856–1913'',

Maxime Maufra Maxime Maufra (17 May 1861 – 23 May 1918) was a French landscape and marine painter, etcher and lithographer. Life Maufra first began painting at 18. He was encouraged to do so by two artists from Nantes such as the brothers Charles Ledu ...

comments: "Coasts, forests, valleys, in every season he observed them with all his senses, reproducing them with all his spirit and sincerity." A catalogue to one of his posthumous exhibitions described how he "occupies a unique place in the evolution of art at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century, as he has been able to fuse together two fundamentally opposing styles: the Syntheticism of Pont-Aven and Impressionism.""Henry Moret"
, ''Jody Klotz''. Retrieved 6 May 2012.

References

Bibliography

* Cariou, André, ''Henry Moret : un paysagiste de l'École de Pont-Aven : xposition Quimper, Musée des beaux-arts, 27 juin-19 octobre 1998'' (catalogue), 1998, * Rolland, Jean-Yves; Baranger, Marie-Bénédicte: ''Henry Moret, 1856-1913'', Éd. Palantines (Plomelin), 2002. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Moret, Henry French Impressionist painters 1856 births 1913 deaths People from Cherbourg-Octeville Pont-Aven painters 19th-century French painters French male painters 20th-century French painters 20th-century French male artists Académie Julian alumni 19th-century French male artists