72. Jules Coignet

Paris 1798 – 1860 Paris

View of Lake Nemi, 1843

During his first stay in Italy from 1824-27, Coignet was a member of the circle of plein air painters which included Corot. This view of Lake Nemi was painted on a second trip in 1843. Located in the Lazio region, some 30 km south of Rome, the small circular volcanic lake was known in antiquity as the Mirror of Diana, whose temple is in nearby Ariccia. Due to its picturesque qualities and mythical associations, it had long been a popular destination with artists. Although Coignet’s study conforms to the compositional tradition of eighteenth-century views of the lake, the artist’s focus was on capturing the light. The vigorous brushwork used to depict the dense vegetation in the foreground gives it a sense of immediacy and contrasts with the smooth, ethereal qualities of the lake and the sky. The inscription of the location and date, incised in the still-wet paint at lower left, places it firmly in the now and emphasizes the speed with which it was painted.