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Lot Essay
As early as 1897, Luce was to take a special interest in two architectural monuments; the cathedral at Gisors, and later Notre-Dame in Paris, where he achieved the most enlivened studies of light and colour. In a letter to his friend Henri-Edmond Cross dated 1899, Luce describes Notre-Dame as: "... incredibly beautiful. I am doing piles of studies and will try to make use of them for some larger canvases" (quoted in B. de Verneilh, 'Maximilien Luce et Notre-Dame de Paris', L'Oeil, no. 332, March 1983, p. 24). Dated 1901-1904, Notre-Dame de Paris, vue du Quai Saint-Michel is one of Luce's most fully realised and complex paintings of the majestic cathedral and its surroundings.
Luce's vantage point offers a plunging perspective which accentuates the steep differences of level between the cathedral, the pavis, the crowd and the river, reminding one of Pissarro's cityscapes of the 1890s. As he continued to work on this subject over several years, Luce began to show a disinterest in close observation. Le Quai Saint-Michel et Notre-Dame of 1901 (fig. 1) offers a close view of the streets which has disappeared from the present work. In contrast, Luce has brought to the latter a vast and broadened view which renders homage to the monumentality of the historical structure.
Prior to and following 1890, Luce was marked by his friendship with Seurat, Signac, and H. E. Cros. Pissarro had brought him in touch with the Neo-Impressionists, whose style he adopted successfully for several years. In the execution of the present work, Luce resorted to a freer version of Pointillism, a technique to which he had remained faithful since meeting Seurat in 1887. Luce renders the vast bulk of the famous gothic cathedral with magnificent cross-hatched strokes of pink, blue and purple tones of the earlier "Pays noir" pictures, which he marries together to create the optical illusion of a gilded morning light, reminiscent of Monet's remarkable studies of Rouen cathedral in the 1890s.
Luce's vantage point offers a plunging perspective which accentuates the steep differences of level between the cathedral, the pavis, the crowd and the river, reminding one of Pissarro's cityscapes of the 1890s. As he continued to work on this subject over several years, Luce began to show a disinterest in close observation. Le Quai Saint-Michel et Notre-Dame of 1901 (fig. 1) offers a close view of the streets which has disappeared from the present work. In contrast, Luce has brought to the latter a vast and broadened view which renders homage to the monumentality of the historical structure.
Prior to and following 1890, Luce was marked by his friendship with Seurat, Signac, and H. E. Cros. Pissarro had brought him in touch with the Neo-Impressionists, whose style he adopted successfully for several years. In the execution of the present work, Luce resorted to a freer version of Pointillism, a technique to which he had remained faithful since meeting Seurat in 1887. Luce renders the vast bulk of the famous gothic cathedral with magnificent cross-hatched strokes of pink, blue and purple tones of the earlier "Pays noir" pictures, which he marries together to create the optical illusion of a gilded morning light, reminiscent of Monet's remarkable studies of Rouen cathedral in the 1890s.