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Subiaco

ca. 1786–89
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 805

Not all plein-air painting is sketchlike in appearance. This example may have benefited from the use of a camera obscura, an optical device that enabled the artist to draw myriad fine details before applying paint. The result is a marvelously deft tonal study of contre-jour (the reflection of full sunlight) that is highly atmospheric for so small a picture. Bidauld was one of a handful of French artists to visit Subiaco in the 1780s.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Subiaco
  • Artist: Joseph Bidauld (French, Carpentras 1758–1846 Montmorency)
  • Date: ca. 1786–89
  • Medium: Oil on paper, laid down on canvas
  • Dimensions: 6 3/4 x 10 in. (17.1 x 25.4 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: The Whitney Collection, Gift of Wheelock Whitney III, and Purchase, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. McVeigh, by exchange, 2003
  • Object Number: 2003.42.27
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Lake Fucino and the Abruzzi Mountains, Joseph Bidauld French, Oil on paper, laid down on canvas
Lake Fucino and the Abruzzi Mountains
Joseph Bidauld
ca. 1789
View of a Farm in the Ile-de-France, Joseph Bidauld French, Oil on paper, laid down on canvas
View of a Farm in the Ile-de-France
Joseph Bidauld
ca. 1810
The Bridge at La Cava, Kingdom of Naples, Joseph Bidauld French, Oil on paper, laid down on canvas
The Bridge at La Cava, Kingdom of Naples
Joseph Bidauld
Aegina Visited by Jupiter, Jean-Baptiste Greuze French, Oil on canvas
Aegina Visited by Jupiter
Jean-Baptiste Greuze
ca. 1767–69
The Trojan Women Setting Fire to Their Fleet, Claude Lorrain (Claude Gellée) French, Oil on canvas
The Trojan Women Setting Fire to Their Fleet
Claude Lorrain (Claude Gellée)
ca. 1643

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