Minneapolis Institute of Art

Brig on the Water

Gustave Le Gray

Date

1856

Medium

salted paper print

Department

European Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Although Gustave Le Gray began as a painter, he is best known for his seascape photography. Through his use of contra-jour, a photographic technique in which the camera points directly toward a source of light, he produced images with strong contrasts in lighting, emphasizing the shape of the subject’s silhouette. Often combining two different negatives, Le Gray created a sharper, more focused image which achieved a tonal balance between sea and sky. The result is a fantastical scene made out of two moments: a turbulent sky that pushes against the horizon, and a calm, small vessel upon the vast sea. Of the approximately 30 pictures of the sea, Brig on the Water is one of his most iconic; selling around 800 prints in the first two months of its sale. France, Europe

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