Biot

Print

-

The Art & History Museums of Maitland

In "Biot," J. André Smith renders a village in the south of France with bold constrasts and faceted, Cubist-inspired forms, giving an everyday view a sense of drama.: In Biot, André Smith depicts the hilltop village of Biot in the south of France, transforming the scene into a study of light, shadow and geometry. An arched bridge spans the foreground as a dark, heavy mass, its arch mirrored in the water below, while the village rises beyond in stacked, block-like forms. Long diagonal lines sweep down through the sky like shafts of light, and a dark tree at left and an angular shape at right frame the view. The faceted forms and dramatic contrasts show the influence of Cubism on Smith's printmaking. A small figure at the end of the bridge gives the scene its sense of scale.
In "Biot," J. André Smith renders a village in the south of France with bold constrasts and faceted, Cubist-inspired forms, giving an everyday view a sense of drama.

In Biot, André Smith depicts the hilltop village of Biot in the south of France, transforming the scene into a study of light, shadow and geometry. An arched bridge spans the foreground as a dark, heavy mass, its arch mirrored in the water below, while the village rises beyond in stacked, block-like forms. Long diagonal lines sweep down through the sky like shafts of light, and a dark tree at left and an angular shape at right frame the view. The faceted forms and dramatic contrasts show the influence of Cubism on Smith's printmaking. A small figure at the end of the bridge gives the scene its sense of scale.

Name/Title

Biot

Entry/Object ID

2013.09

Description

This etching by J. André Smith depicts Biot, a medieval hilltop village on the French Riviera in a Modernist manner.

Type of Print

Etching

Artwork Details

Subject Place

Country

France

Region

Western Europe

Continent

Europe

Collection

Smith Collection (MAA)

Cataloged By

Bianca Fazio

Acquisition

Accession

2013.04

Source or Donor

Peter Banca

Made/Created

Artist

J. André Smith

Inscription/Signature/Marks

Type

Inscription

Location

Lower Left Corner

Transcription

Biot

Type

Signature

Location

Lower middle

Interpretative Labels

Label Type

Object Label

Label

In this "Biot", J. André Smith depicts the hilltop village of Biot in the south of France, transforming the scene into a study of light, shadow, and geometry. An arched bridge spans the foreground as a dark, heavy mass, its arch mirrored in the water below, while the buildings beyond rise in stacked, block-like forms. Long diagonal lines sweep downward through the sky like beams of light. The composition is framed by a bare tree on the left and and angular shadow on the right. Smith's use of bold contrasts and faceted, Cubist-inspired forms gives an everyday view a sense of drama.