The Wave (La Vague)

André Marty|Henri Rivière

1893 · Lithograph in eight colors · Drawings and Prints

Rivière here conveys the immediacy of a wave crashing against a rock, its dramatic spray of water expressed by the reserve of the paper—areas where no ink is printed. This work continues a theme the artist explored in his first celebrated series of prints, "La mer, études de vagues" (The Sea, Studies of Waves), from 1890−92, based on his observations of the ocean while visiting the northwest coastal region of Brittany. Directly inspired by his study of Japanese ukiyo-e prints, Rivière later translated the aesthetic of his Japoniste woodcuts into the medium of lithography, as seen here.

Artist

André Marty|Henri Rivière

Date

1893

Medium

Lithograph in eight colors

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1922