Self-Portrait (1895)

Auguste Louis Lepère prints show Paris and the French countryside through the eyes of one of the great printmakers of his age. Lepère led the revival of original wood engraving in France, cutting his own designs of quays, bridges, crowds, forests and stormy coasts. Our collection of fine art prints includes his Paris views, the 1889 World's Fair, Fontainebleau forest scenes, the Paris-Almanach seasons and his 1914 war prints.

About Auguste Louis Lepère

Auguste Louis Lepère was born in Paris on 30 November 1849. From 1862 he trained as an apprentice to the engraver Joseph Burn Smeeton, and for years he worked as a reproductive engraver, cutting other artists' pictures for illustrated papers such as Le Monde illustré and L'Illustration.

Gradually he turned to prints of his own design, in wood engraving, etching and colour. He co-founded the print series L'Estampe originale in 1888 and helped run the woodcut review L'Image in 1896–97. He also illustrated books, among them Paysages parisiens (1892) and Huysmans's À rebours (1903), with 220 colour wood engravings.

Lepère worked across France, from Paris and the forest of Fontainebleau to Rouen, Nantes and the coast and marshes of the Vendée. He died at Domme on 20 November 1918.

Style and Subjects

Lepère's Paris is full of life: dockers at the canal, street sweepers at night roll call, crowds leaving the great hall of the 1889 World's Fair, Bastille Day on the rue de Belleville. He loved strong contrasts of black and white, with dark buildings set against a broken sky or a white jet of water glowing on a night ground.

In his colour prints the tones are soft and earthy, and his landscapes of Fontainebleau and the Vendée have a quiet, open feel. Whatever the subject, his line is lively and sure, the work of a craftsman who knew every tool of the engraver's trade.

Famous Works

• Notre-Dame, le soir (1890). The cathedral at dusk, black against a broken sky.
• Le Palais des machines (1889). Crowds leaving the great iron hall of the 1889 World's Fair.
• Fontaines lumineuses (1889). The lit fountains of the 1889 fair, a white jet on a solid black ground.
• Paris-Almanach: Winter (1897). One of four seasons from the almanac he made with Charles Morice.
• Self-Portrait (1895). The engraver's own portrait.
• The Breaking Waves, Tide of September 1901 (1901). Surf on the Vendée coast.
• La Procession de la Fête-Dieu à Nantes (1901). A Corpus Christi procession through the streets of Nantes.
• Death and Passions Descend upon the World (1914). One of his prints of the First World War.

Decorating with Lepère Prints

Lepère's black-and-white Paris views look sharp in a hallway, study or living room, especially in thin black frames with wide white mounts. A row of quays, bridges and street scenes makes a fine gallery for anyone who loves Paris.

His Fontainebleau and Vendée landscapes bring calm to a bedroom or reading corner, and the four Paris-Almanach seasons make a neat set for a dining room or kitchen. The 1889 fair prints add a touch of drama to a modern room.

FAQ

Who was Auguste Louis Lepère?

Auguste Louis Lepère (1849–1918) was a French wood engraver, etcher and painter, and one of the leaders of the revival of original wood engraving in France.

What made Lepère important?

He moved wood engraving from copying other artists' pictures to making original prints of his own design, and helped found L'Estampe originale and the review L'Image.

What are Lepère's most famous prints?

His Paris views such as Notre-Dame, le soir, his 1889 World's Fair prints, the 1897 Paris-Almanach and his colour illustrations for Huysmans's À rebours.

Where can I see Lepère's work?

Museums including the Musée d'Orsay, the Bibliothèque nationale de France, the National Gallery of Art in Washington and the Metropolitan Museum of Art hold his prints.

What subjects did Lepère favour?

Paris streets, quays and bridges, the forest of Fontainebleau, the Vendée coast and marshes, Rouen and Nantes, and later the First World War.

Related Artists

• Félix Bracquemond: French etcher and fellow leader of the original print revival
• Henri Rivière: French printmaker of Paris and Brittany views
• Félix Vallotton: bold black-and-white woodcut artist of 1890s Paris
• Charles Meryon: earlier etcher of old Paris