Paysage (Landscape)

Charles Jacque was a driving force behind the Etching Revival in France. Associated with the Barbizon school of landscapists, he was the only one of them who was primarily a printmaker. He detested Paris and was a prolific etcher of rural subjects. In this diminutive print, Jacque applies his virtuoso technique to a nocturnal scene "lit" by the reserves of white paper corresponding to the candle flame and its reflection in the pond. The just-perceptible figure bending toward the surface of the water recalls the mythical Narcissus, enraptured by his own reflection.