The Garden of Pericles

The Garden of Pericles by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (French, 1796-1875), created in 1856, provides a key example of the artist’s innovative engagement with experimental printmaking techniques. This piece was rendered using the cliché-verre process, a specialized hybrid method that combined elements of drawing, etching, and early photography, which became particularly influential among artists in France during the mid-19th century. To create the image, Corot utilized a glass plate coated with an opaque medium; he then used a stylus to scratch away the coating, drawing the composition in reverse. This prepared plate was then used as a negative, exposing the design onto light-sensitive ivory photographic paper, resulting in a print that captures the spontaneous line work and tonal subtleties of a charcoal drawing.

Corot, while celebrated globally for his lyrical landscape paintings, was deeply invested in producing these experimental prints between 1853 and 1874. The Garden of Pericles reflects his characteristic blend of natural observation and classical allusion. The title, referencing the statesman from Athens’s Golden Age, suggests an idealized, timeless setting, consistent with the classical currents that permeated French academic landscape traditions.

The technical classification of this work as a print highlights Corot’s mastery in exploiting new materials to achieve unique visual effects unavailable in traditional etching or lithography. This specific impression is held in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, where it serves as a critical artifact documenting the historical convergence of artistic draftsmanship and nascent photographic technology in the 1850s. The popularity and accessibility of prints like this one have ensured that Corot's experimental approach remains widely studied, often supported by institutions making such works available through public domain initiatives.