id: 95284 accession number: 1916.1053 share license status: CC0 url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.1053 updated: 2024-03-26 01:56:11.466000 Path Near the Pond of Vipers, Fontainebleau Forest, c. 1860s. Narcisse Diaz de la Peña (French, 1807–1876). Oil on wood panel; unframed: 26.7 x 36.2 cm (10 1/2 x 14 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wade 1916.1053 title: Path Near the Pond of Vipers, Fontainebleau Forest title in original language: series: series in original language: creation date: c. 1860s creation date earliest: 1860 creation date latest: 1869 current location: creditline: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wade copyright: --- culture: France, 19th century technique: oil on wood panel department: Modern European Painting and Sculpture collection: Mod Euro - Painting 1800-1960 type: Painting find spot: catalogue raisonne: --- CREATORS * Narcisse Diaz de la Peña (French, 1807–1876) - artist Diaz de la Peña's Spanish parents, who were political refugees, died by the time he was ten years old, and Narcisse was sent to Bellevue to live with a pastor's family. Because of a snake bite, his left leg had to be amputated when he was thirteen. In 1825 he became an apprentice colorist in Arsène Gillet's porcelain factory. During his time there he met Gillet's nephew, Dupré (q.v.), and Louis Cabat (1812-1893), both associated with the group of painters working in Barbizon. In 1827 he was briefly taught by François Souchon (1787-1857) and also copied the works of Correggio (1483-1534) and Prud'hon (q.v.) in the Louvre. His own paintings were shown at the Salon from 1831 until 1859 and included subjects from the Bible, mythology, literature, and the Orient, inspired by Delacroix (q.v.) and Decamps (q.v.), as Diaz himself never traveled that far. From 1835 onward, he often visited Barbizon and the forest of Fontainebleau. Although the influence of Decamps remained, he met artists such as Théodore Rousseau (q.v.), whom he greatly admired, which resulted in many studies of trees and rocks. Apart from concentrating on lush landscapes, Diaz also used his forest scenes as backgrounds for nudes disguised as Venuses or nymphs. Such works answered a reviving taste for compositions with a rococo flavor, and Diaz readily sold his art to many collectors. From the 1840s on he became quite successful and eventually received several awards, among them the Legion of Honor in 1851. He could demand high prices for his works, and various artists began imitating his style. Diaz's financial success enabled him to support some of his friends such as Rousseau and Millet (q.v.). Diaz was one of the most eminent members of the Barbizon school of painters, a group that turned away from academic training to study directly from nature. --- measurements: Unframed: 26.7 x 36.2 cm (10 1/2 x 14 1/4 in.) state of the work: edition of the work: support materials: inscriptions: inscription: Signed lower left: N. Diaz translation: remark: --- CURRENT EXHIBITIONS title: The Silver Jubilee Exhibition opening date: 1941-06-23T04:00:00 The Silver Jubilee Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-September 28, 1941). title: French Drawings and Watercolors from French Public and Private Collections opening date: 1942-01-06T05:00:00 French Drawings and Watercolors from French Public and Private Collections. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (January 6-February 15, 1942). title: 19th and 20th Century French Art and Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Loans opening date: 1943-06-22T04:00:00 19th and 20th Century French Art and Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Loans. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 22-September 1, 1943). title: Baron Gros, Painter of Battles: The First Romantic Painter opening date: 1956-03-08T05:00:00 Baron Gros, Painter of Battles: The First Romantic Painter. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 8-April 15, 1956). title: Barbizon School opening date: 1963-01-24T05:00:00 Barbizon School. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 24-March 3, 1963). --- LEGACY EXHIBITIONS * {'description': 'Manchester, N.H., Currier Gallery of Art; New York, IBM Gallery of Science and Art; Dallas Museum of Art; Atlanta, High Museum of Art, The Rise of Landscape Painting in France: Corot to Monet (1991-92), 228, no. 64, 161 (repr.).', 'opening_date': '1991-01-01T00:00:00'} --- PROVENANCE --- fun fact: digital description: wall description: --- RELATED WORKS --- CITATIONS Argencourt, Louise d', and Roger Diederen. Catalogue of Paintings. Pt. 4. European Paintings of the 19th Century. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1974. page number: Mentioned and reproduced: P. 244-245, Vol. I, no. 87 url: --- IMAGES web: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1053/1916.1053_web.jpg print: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1053/1916.1053_print.jpg full: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.1053/1916.1053_full.tif