Amiens Cathedral - Louis Auguste Lepère

Gift of Alfred E. Hamill

"Amiens Cathedral" by Louis Auguste Lepère (1907) Etching on ivory Japanese paper laid down on card.

Commentary

"Amiens Cathedral" by Louis Auguste Lepère (1907) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. The print-based method rewards close viewing, where line, texture, and contrast do most of the expressive work. Themes to notice in clude engraving. This piece is held in the source collection's Prints and Drawings collection. Louis Auguste Lepère is the artist behind this work. A useful anchor for reading the piece: Louis Auguste Lepère (French, 1849-1918) published by Sagot-Le Garrec (French, active 1883-1948). The work is cataloged within a France cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as engraving, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Etching on ivory Japanese paper laid down on card) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (Image: 34.7 × 24.3 cm (13 11/16 × 9 5/8 in.); Plate: 37.3 × 26.4 cm (14 11/16 × 10 7/16 in.); Sheet: 46.3 × 32 cm (18 1/4 × 12 5/8 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include engraving. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/61264

Sources: Art Institute of Chicago; Art Institute of Chicago / Public Records; Art Institute of Chicago Collection Data