Port at setting sun by P. Wallaert around 1780

Very beautiful oil on canvas representing a view of a Mediterranean port at setting sun.
The scene takes place in a cove at the foot of a lighthouse.
In the foreground, fishermen are busy landing their fish and hauling in their nets, while in the background larger vessels, including a three-masted galleon, are at anchor in the bay.


Very good state of conservation.

Signed lower center “P. Wallaert”.*
Louis XVI period gilded wood frame.

Label on the reverse on the frame of the exhibition at the Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna in Turin: Italy seen by French painters" - Pierre Wallaert, Ships in the port".

Dimensions:

Canvas: Width: 102 cm; Height: 59 cm
Frame: Width: 112 cm; Height: 69.5 cm

Our opinion :

As a great master of the north, Pierre Joseph Wallaert gives us a very lively scene with a multitude of details in the representation of the characters and the boats.
But he also demonstrates great talent as a colorist with a sky with soft orange tones which proves to us that he has patiently studied the sunsets of the south of France.
Indeed, at the beginning of the 1780s the painter settled in the Phoenician city where he remained for a few years, before settling permanently in Toulouse.
Our navy, which is inspired by the works of the great painter Joseph Vernet, corresponds perfectly to this Marseille period of Joseph Wallaert.
The panoramic format, the ingenuity of a “V” composition between the lighthouse, the people and the boats, the meticulous rendering of the details and the sumptuousness of the sky make it one of the most beautiful seascapes known to Wallaert.
In terms of quality it equals the most beautiful port views painted by Lacroix of Marseille who was the great Provençal specialist in the navy and one of Vernet's best students.


*Pierre Joseph Wallaert (1755-1882)
A student of the Lille Academy, of which he became a member in 1778, he settled for a time in Marseille after 1781, before settling permanently in Toulouse around 1786. Received at the Royal Academy of Toulouse the following year, he regularly exhibited at his salons which revealed him as the first Pyrenean painter. He was the decorator of revolutionary festivals and shows, but also of the salons of the town hall during Napoleon's visit in 1808. He was also responsible for the decor of the Capitole performance hall in 1818.