Pierre-nicolas Wéry – River Landscape At The Castle – Oil On Canvas – Early 19th Century

Pierre-Nicolas WÉRY,
River Landscape with Castle,
Oil on canvas,
Painter's name inscribed on the back of the stretcher,
36 x 25 cm.

This work of rare delicacy offers us a romantic landscape imbued with a golden and melancholic light, characteristic of the artistic sensibility of the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries.

The composition is structured along a skillfully constructed diagonal, leading the eye from the earthy and shaded foreground to the bluish distance of a vast body of water—lake or river—that fades into the light mist of the horizon.

At the center of the scene, overlooking a rocky promontory encircled by a stone wall, rises a medieval architectural ensemble: a castle flanked by two towers topped with dark slate pepperpot roofs, whose slender silhouettes stand out against a hazy sky where pearly clouds mingle with the warm glow of sunset. The surrounding vegetation—tall, dark trees with dense canopies, slender poplars—envelops the building in a generous embrace of nature, reinforcing its picturesque and slightly mysterious character.

In the foreground, a winding dirt path animates the scene of daily life: a man leads a laden donkey, while in the distance, on the riverbank, two strollers seem to contemplate the landscape. These figures, rendered with an economy of means typical of the genre, lend the whole a discreet scale and humanity, without ever competing with the majesty of the site.

The palette, restrained and harmonious, plays on the contrasts between the browns and ochres of the soil, the deep greens of the vegetation, and the bluish and pale pink tones of the sky and water. The brushstrokes are delicate, applied with care, revealing a certain technical mastery in the rendering of textures—rough stone, shimmering leaves, reflections.

The artist's name has been added in pencil on the back of the work, on the stretcher. Also included are some details about the previous owners.

The painting has been relined in the past. It is in very good condition (fine craquelure). It is presented in a fairly large giltwood, stuccoed, and varnished frame, which lends this rare work all the presence and nobility it deserves.

Very little is known about Pierre-Nicolas Wéry, except that he was born in Paris and spent most of his life in Lyon. The Museum of Fine Arts in Lyon owns one of his oil paintings, but the artist is known primarily for his engravings of the Lyon region. The work we are presenting is therefore an exceptional testament to his activity as a painter.

The work can be viewed at the gallery (07240).
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