Antoine Claude Ponthus-cinier - Amalfi Coast With Cliffs And Figures - Oil On Canvas
Artist: Ponthus-cinier Antoine Claude (1812 – 1885, Lyon, France)
Antoine Claude PONTHUS-CINIER (1812 - 1885)
Côte amalfitaine aux falaises et personnages
Oil on canvas
100 × 60 cm - With frame: 115 × 75 cm
Very good condition
This canvas belongs to a series of eight panels commissioned by M. Villard (Saint-Germain-au-Mont-d'Or) by Ponthus-Cinier, authenticated thanks to the Librum Veritatis and sold at the Conan-Belleville sale in Lyon in 2025 before entering a private collection.
The subject is a view of the Amalfi coast, recognizable by its limestone cliffs directly overhanging the Tyrrhenian Sea, crowned by a fortified city with cubic volumes gilded by the end-of-day light. The composition, vertical and ample, provides a vast breath of light in the pale sky that occupies the upper third of the canvas, contrasting with the mineral density of the rocks that structure the foreground. On the translucent blue-green sea, two sailboats with lateen sails animate the horizon with a discretion that reinforces the sense of calm and expanse. At center right, three figures in traditional Italian costume - including a woman in red - sit or stand on the path along the cliff. Two others stand on an islet protruding from the coast. These are familiar figures from travel painting, testifying to the intense artistic frequentation of this coastline in the 19th century.
The execution is meticulous, the brushstrokes melting in the distance and firmer in the rendering of the rocks, with that acute sense of southern light that Ponthus-Cinier had acquired during his Neapolitan sojourn.
Trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Lyon, then in Paul Delaroche's Paris studio, Antoine Ponthus-Cinier's stay in Italy between 1842 and 1844 had a lasting impact on his work. He brought back a series of coastal views and southern landscapes of remarkable light and precision, faithfully recorded in his Librum Veritatis kept at the Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon. Back in France, he established himself as one of Lyon's most esteemed landscape painters of the second half of the 19th century, exhibiting regularly at the Salon and receiving prestigious private commissions.
Condition: good overall. Old canvas mounted on a modern wooden stretcher with a crossbar. Spine without inscription or label.
Frame: large, modern, quality baguette with gilded matte effects.
Provenance: M. Villard, Saint-Germain-au-Mont-d'Or (commissioned directly from the artist); auction sale, Maison Conan-Belleville, Lyon, 2025; private collection.
Authenticity: series authenticated via the artist's Librum Veritatis (Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon).
Bibliography/archives:
- Librum Veritatis by Antoine Claude Ponthus-Cinier, Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon (autograph reproduction of the work).
Work on view at the gallery (07240).
Shipping: please contact us for shipping costs in France and abroad.
Côte amalfitaine aux falaises et personnages
Oil on canvas
100 × 60 cm - With frame: 115 × 75 cm
Very good condition
This canvas belongs to a series of eight panels commissioned by M. Villard (Saint-Germain-au-Mont-d'Or) by Ponthus-Cinier, authenticated thanks to the Librum Veritatis and sold at the Conan-Belleville sale in Lyon in 2025 before entering a private collection.
The subject is a view of the Amalfi coast, recognizable by its limestone cliffs directly overhanging the Tyrrhenian Sea, crowned by a fortified city with cubic volumes gilded by the end-of-day light. The composition, vertical and ample, provides a vast breath of light in the pale sky that occupies the upper third of the canvas, contrasting with the mineral density of the rocks that structure the foreground. On the translucent blue-green sea, two sailboats with lateen sails animate the horizon with a discretion that reinforces the sense of calm and expanse. At center right, three figures in traditional Italian costume - including a woman in red - sit or stand on the path along the cliff. Two others stand on an islet protruding from the coast. These are familiar figures from travel painting, testifying to the intense artistic frequentation of this coastline in the 19th century.
The execution is meticulous, the brushstrokes melting in the distance and firmer in the rendering of the rocks, with that acute sense of southern light that Ponthus-Cinier had acquired during his Neapolitan sojourn.
Trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Lyon, then in Paul Delaroche's Paris studio, Antoine Ponthus-Cinier's stay in Italy between 1842 and 1844 had a lasting impact on his work. He brought back a series of coastal views and southern landscapes of remarkable light and precision, faithfully recorded in his Librum Veritatis kept at the Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon. Back in France, he established himself as one of Lyon's most esteemed landscape painters of the second half of the 19th century, exhibiting regularly at the Salon and receiving prestigious private commissions.
Condition: good overall. Old canvas mounted on a modern wooden stretcher with a crossbar. Spine without inscription or label.
Frame: large, modern, quality baguette with gilded matte effects.
Provenance: M. Villard, Saint-Germain-au-Mont-d'Or (commissioned directly from the artist); auction sale, Maison Conan-Belleville, Lyon, 2025; private collection.
Authenticity: series authenticated via the artist's Librum Veritatis (Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon).
Bibliography/archives:
- Librum Veritatis by Antoine Claude Ponthus-Cinier, Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon (autograph reproduction of the work).
Work on view at the gallery (07240).
Shipping: please contact us for shipping costs in France and abroad.
2 000 €
Period: 19th century
Style: Napoleon 3rd
Condition: Excellent condition
Material: Oil painting
Width: 60 cm / 75 cm encadré
Height: 100 cm / 115 cm encadré
Reference (ID): 1760827
Availability: In stock
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