Adolphe Appian’s etching, “A Gorge de Loup”, 1863

Adolphe Appian (aka Jacques Barthélemy Appian) (1818–1898)

“A Gorge de Loup” (aka “À Gorge de Loup [Environs de Lyon]”), 1863, published in Paris by Alfred Cadart (1828–1875) for his 1878 catalogue (see Curtis & Prouté [1968] p. 5).

Etching with plate tone on laid paper with small margins and backed on a support sheet.

Size: (sheet) 12.1 x 16.7 cm; (plate) 7.5 x 11.9 cm; (image borderline) 5.9 x 10.3 cm.

State iii (of iv) with the erasure of the title, “À Gorge de Loup (Environs de Lyon)” lettered in the second state and the partial erasure of the artist’s name and date below the image borderline at lower left, “APPIAN. 1863”.

Regarding this state, Curtis & Prouté (1968) advise that (transl.) “[This state] differs from the 1^st state by a general heavier wieght. Especially on the house and especially on the bush which has become very light and heavy, the man seems as tall as the fence” (p. 5).

Jennings (1925) offers an insight that may help to explain the slight smudge on the lower right corner of the image borderline: “The collector should be beware of so-called “proofs” (faux avant-lettres) where titles and lettering have been masked in the printing. [These] … may be detected by faint marks in the corner of the paper extening laterally from the lower corners” (p. 108). In the case of this impression, the “erasure” of lettered details may have been facilitated by Alfred Cadart (1828–1875) for his 1978 catalogue and executed by Auguste Delâtre (aka Auguste Marie Delâtre) (1822–1907), but I do not have documentation to support this proposal.

Curtis & Prouté 5iii (Atherton Cutiis & Paul Prouté 1968, “Adolphe Appian son Oeuvre Gravé et Lithographié”, Paris, Paul Prouté, p. 5, cat. no. 5, III); Jennings 6 (Herbert H Jennings 1925, Adolphe Appian (essay) in “Print Collector’s Quarterly,” vol. 12, no. 1, p. 114, cat. no. 6).

The British Museum offers the following description of this print:

“A landscape view of Gorge de Loup, with a figure walking along a path; at right, a cluster of trees; at left, a house in the distance” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1931-0105-2).

Condition: an excellent, richly inked impression with small margins in near pristine condition with no tears, holes, folds, losses, abrasions, stains (beyond a small smudge at lower right), foxing or signs of handling and laid upon an archival support sheet of millennium quality washi paper.

I am selling this poetically haunting small landscape by an artist that is closely connected to the Barbizon School, for the total cost of AU$305 (currently US$236.38/EUR192.80/GBP174 at the time of this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this superb study of what I see as melancholic solitude, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This print has been sold