Breton Studies, Charles Cottet - Brittany

Studies of Bretons.
Dimensions without frame at the base 22.5 cm x 27.5 cm.
Drypoint numbered 3 and signed by the author in the margin, circa 1910.
Charles Cottet (1863 - 1925):
A student of Alfred Roll, he undertook a journey on foot through Brittany in 1885. In Douarnenez, he met Gustave Toudouze who introduced him to Camaret where he shared the life of the fishermen whom he willingly accompanied to the islands, to Sein or Ouessant. Charles Cottet, along with Lucien Simon and André Dauchez, was part of the so-called "Black Band" artists, so named because they uncompromisingly expressed the harshness of Breton life. His work is distinguished by a realism with a dark palette whose often dramatic character finds its chosen land in Brittany. The power of his portraits and landscapes makes him an extraordinary artist. Some of his works are exhibited at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris and in numerous museums around the world.