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Learn MoreLa baie de Lampaul, île d’Ouessant by Henry Moret
- This radiant seascape was painted at the height of Henry Moret's esteemed career
- Moret's association with Paul Gauguin and his circle profoundly shaped his bold use of color
- Moret's Brittany paintings are held in important museums around the world
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1856–1913 | French
La baie de Lampaul, île d'Ouessant
Signed and dated "Henry Moret 1897" (lower right)
Inscribed "La baie de Lampaul Ouessant" (on stretcher)
Oil on canvas
Painted at the height of his career, Henry Moret's La baie de Lampaul, île d'Ouessant stands as a supreme achievement among his celebrated Brittany seascapes. The shimmering azure waters, sun-warmed rock formations and luminous coastal light of the île d'Ouessant—one of Moret's. . .
1856–1913 | French
La baie de Lampaul, île d'Ouessant
Signed and dated "Henry Moret 1897" (lower right)
Inscribed "La baie de Lampaul Ouessant" (on stretcher)
Oil on canvas
Painted at the height of his career, Henry Moret's La baie de Lampaul, île d'Ouessant stands as a supreme achievement among his celebrated Brittany seascapes. The shimmering azure waters, sun-warmed rock formations and luminous coastal light of the île d'Ouessant—one of Moret's most beloved and frequently revisited motifs—are rendered with a vibrancy and technical mastery that place this canvas among the finest examples of Post-Impressionist landscape painting available outside a museum collection.
The composition pulses with chromatic energy. The surface of the Bay of Lampaul is animated by hundreds of carefully layered brushstrokes, each contributing to the water's luminous, shifting character. Warm, orange-red rock formations emerge from the sea with geological weight, their earthen tones providing a vivid counterpoint to the brilliant blues and greens that dominate the scene. Fresh grass blankets the hillsides in rich, varied greens, while Moret weaves additional tonal accents throughout with a painter's instinct for harmony and contrast.
Henry Moret occupies a distinguished place in the Post-Impressionist tradition as one of the most accomplished painters to emerge from the celebrated Pont-Aven circle. His attachment to Brittany began during his military service and deepened through his close association with Paul Gauguin and the Nabis, whose bold approach to color permanently transformed his palette. The île d'Ouessant, perched at the western extreme of the Breton coast, became a defining subject in Moret's oeuvre — its ever-changing seas and skies offering an inexhaustible source of painterly inspiration. By 1897, when this work was executed, Moret had secured a pivotal relationship with the influential dealer Paul Durand-Ruel, who championed his work across Europe and the United States and presented him with a coveted solo exhibition in 1898. As fellow artist Maxime Mofra observed, "Coasts, forests, valleys, in every season Moret observed them with all his senses, reproducing them with all his spirit and sincerity." Today, Moret's Brittany paintings are held by world-famous institutions, among them the Musée d'Orsay, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
This work is listed in Jean-Yves Rolland’s archives and will be included in the catalogue raisonné currently in preparation.
Painted 1897
Canvas: 21" high x 25" wide (53.3 x 63.5 cm)
Frame: 29 3/8" high x 33 1/2" wide x 3" deep (74.6 x 85.1 x 7.6 cm)
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Provenance:
Galerie Abels, Cologne:
Private Collection, Germany:
Private Collection, France:
M.S. Rau, New Orleans

| Maker: | Moret_Henry |
| Period: | 1816-1918 |
| Origin: | France |
| Type: | Paintings |
| Style: | Post-Impressionism |
| Depth: | 3.0 in. (7.62 cm) |
| Width: | 33.5 in. (85.09 cm) |
| Height: | 29.38 in. (74.61 cm) |
| Canvas Width: | 25.000 in. (63.5 cm) |
| Canvas Height: | 21.000 in. (53.34 cm) |
At M.S. Rau, we are committed to building a long-term, rewarding relationship with each and every client. That’s why your purchase is backed by our 125% guarantee.
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