Emile Frédéric Nicolle (1830-1894) The Alabaster Coast

The Work :

Oil on Cardboard 14 x 23 cm.
Signed and dated 1861 lower right. In excellent overall condition.

The work is ready to hang.
Presented in a frame with a wide mustard velvet mat and a gilt molding, which perfectly highlights the painting's luminosity.

Immerse yourself in the powerful atmosphere of this captivating seascape, an oil on cardboard executed with great mastery of contrasts.
The work depicts a wild coastline where steep cliffs face the fury of a raging sea, under an electrically charged sky.

A magnificent interplay between the deep tones of stormy blue and the highlights of golden light on the rocky walls, after a storm on the Normandy coast, probably in the Saint-Valery-en-Caux region.

The handling of the paint, particularly in the foam of the waves and the texture of the stone, brings remarkable relief and dynamism. A work that is both dramatic and soothing, romantic landscapes where nature expresses all its power, typical of our Normandy coast.

Presented in a frame with a wide mustard velvet mat and a gilt trim, which perfectly highlights the painting's luminosity.
In excellent overall condition.
The work is ready to hang.


The Artist :

Émile Frédéric Nicolle (Rouen, March 1, 1830 – Saint-Valery-en-Caux, August 15, 1894).

Émile Frédéric Nicolle was a French engraver and painter.
He painted seascapes, landscapes, and still lifes, and also engraved local village scenes. After continuing his studies at the Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen, Émile Nicolle worked as a shipping broker in Le Havre and Rouen.

Nicolle skillfully used his business success to further his artistic talents.
Living in Rouen in 1876, Nicolle enjoyed painting the ports where he worked, as well as the regional landscapes, which became his favorite subjects. He particularly enjoyed painting the beaches and cliffs around St. Valery en Caux, where Nicolle spent the last years of his life. Émile Frédéric Nicolle began exhibiting in Rouen in 1864.

Nicolle also played a significant role in the art world as the maternal grandfather of the painter, sculptor, and author Marcel Duchamp; the Cubist painter and engraver Jacques Villon; the sculptor Raymond Duchamp-Villon; and the painter Suzanne Duchamp. While they were still young, Nicolle gave them artistic training and paid for part of their studies. In 1886, he was one of the founding members of the Society of Friends of Rouen Monuments.

Almost all of Nicolle's paintings are now the property of the Rouen Museum, as he did not sell them, keeping them or giving them to his family, friends, or professional contacts.
He did, however, produce drawings and engravings intended for copying and publication.
He is thus responsible for a whole series of engravings of old Rouen and Norman landscapes.

In 1931, Jacques Villon, his grandson, sold 129 engraved copper plates by his grandfather to the Louvre Museum's engraving department. Presented at the Rouen Museum of Fine Arts