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Lot Essay
In 1898, Sickert travelled to Dieppe, a picturesque old town with a bustling port, and one of the most fashionable resorts in France at the time. Its beautiful architecture and invigorating climate, along with its easy accessibility via the Channel from England or the railway from Paris, appealed to French and English artists alike: Turner, Monet, Renoir, Degas and Pissarro all found inspiration in the town. Sickert was delighted with this new artistic spot and wrote to his friend, Mrs Humphrey, 'this place, Dieppe, is my only, up to now, goldmine, and I must work at it a bit till I get a decent comfort' (W. Baron (ed.), Sickert Paintings, London, 1992, p. 114).
The view of St Jacques church seen down rue Pecquet was painted by Sickert many times, particularly over two periods, from 1899-1900 and again in 1906-1909. The present work belongs to the latter, and it is identifiable from the first series by the addition of a tree at the top right side of the street, and the fence running across part of the portal. In the same way, Sickert’s style started to show some differences: his palette became brighter and more colourful, and his application of paint thicker and more heavily impastoed.
We are very grateful to Dr Wendy Baron for her assistance in cataloguing this work.
The view of St Jacques church seen down rue Pecquet was painted by Sickert many times, particularly over two periods, from 1899-1900 and again in 1906-1909. The present work belongs to the latter, and it is identifiable from the first series by the addition of a tree at the top right side of the street, and the fence running across part of the portal. In the same way, Sickert’s style started to show some differences: his palette became brighter and more colourful, and his application of paint thicker and more heavily impastoed.
We are very grateful to Dr Wendy Baron for her assistance in cataloguing this work.