Alexandre Jean Noël Attributed To "fishermen Probing The Moonlight"

Attributed to Alexandre Jean Noël. Oil on canvas, "Fishermen Sounding the Moonlight," unsigned. 71 x 137.5 cm. French School. Alexandre Jean Noël (1752-1834) was a pupil of Joseph Vernet (1714-1789) and exhibited at the Salon from 1800 to 1822. He traveled to California, Spain, and Portugal, painting primarily in watercolor, depicting storms, tempests, moonlit scenes, moonlight, and naval battles. The Château-Thierry Museum holds his painting "The Storm," and the Metz Museum, "Three Seascapes." Other works by this artist are in the Carnavalet Museum and the Louvre Museum in Paris (sources: Bénézit Dictionary of Painters and Sculptors). Our painting is a fine example of what Noël, one of Vernet's most devoted pupils, learned best from the master's teachings. But beyond this rich training, the painter developed his own style for creating seascapes bathed in a diffuse atmospheric light, particularly his vaporous skies and, above all, that famous silvery clarity that so characterizes his work. Furthermore, Noël has a unique way of painting fishermen, emphasizing the vibrant colors of their clothing to place them at the center of the scene, thus contrasting with the more muted tones of the land and water. Here, the circular fort in the background, although reminiscent of Castel Sant'Angelo in Rome, serves as a pretext for creating a Capriccio where real monuments blend with invented landscapes. Modern painted and patinated wooden frame. Good condition. 8800 euros.