Galerie Paul Prouté

A prominent member of the Impressionist group, Camille Pissarro was one of those within the group who took the greatest interest in printmaking— à l’impression gravée” as he called them. A largely self-taught painter (though influenced by Corot, Millet, and Courbet), Pissarro, the printmaker, was close to Dr. Paul Gachet (an amateur printmaker known as Van Ryssel) and later to Degas (particularly around 1878–1880), with whom he experimented with the “craft” of printmaking (various aquatint processes, the original “manière grise” technique, and monotype). By working on the plate to achieve the “effect” that refined ink applications might have produced, creating multiple proofs, and printing only a few copies of his plates, Pissarro sought to transform what was essentially a multiple into a unique work of art. His approximately 130 etchings (a few in color) and 77 lithographs (a technique that interested him less) most often feature the motifs of landscapes with peasants found in his paintings and drawings (Pissarro was a prolific draftsman and a master of watercolor); however, they were not particularly sought after by the public during the artist’s lifetime.