Attributed to Jean Pillement (1728-1808). Coastal Landscape, a Stormy Day,

Attributed to Jean Pillement (1728-1808). Coastal Landscape, a Stormy Day, circa 1800.

Oil on relined canvas, 66 cm x 40 cm.
Very fine antique frame, 81 cm x 66 cm.

This charming seascape depicts a stormy scene on a rocky coast, enlivened by a turbulent sea and a stormy sky. In the foreground, on a wave-battered headland, figures are trying to call for help, their boat having apparently run aground. In the background, a monumental lighthouse, erected on a jetty, stands out in a misty atmosphere, while port architecture and sketched ships emerge from the gloom. The steep rocks and a tree with supple branches and delicate foliage frame the composition, creating a contrast between the solidity of the land and the instability of the sea. The palette, dominated by bluish-gray, green, and ochre tones, lends the whole a silvery and poetic atmosphere. The free and fluid brushstrokes favor the overall effect and movement over meticulous detail. The work belongs to the tradition of dramatic seascapes inspired by Claude-Joseph Vernet, while revealing a more decorative and lyrical sensibility, characteristic of Jean Pillement.

Related works:
A Rocky Coast by the Mouth of the Tagus, with Survivors (1786), Christie's London, sold for over €70,000, in which a striking similarity of figures and their expressions can be observed with our painting.
A Rocky Coastal Landscape with Shipwrecked Figures in a Storm, the Masts of the Ship Beyond, Christie's 2015…

Jean Pillement (1728-1808)

Jean Pillement was one of the most prolific and cosmopolitan French painters and draughtsmen of the 18th century. Born in Lyon in 1728, he received early training in drawing and displayed a strong taste for landscape, decorative fantasy, and scenes inspired by nature. His career was marked by exceptional mobility. From the 1740s onward, he traveled and worked in Spain, Portugal, Italy, and then England, where he enjoyed great success. In London, his compositions of imaginary landscapes, seascapes, and decorative capriccios found an aristocratic clientele receptive to his elegant and poetic style. He also spent time in Poland, in the service of King Stanislas II, before returning permanently to France in the 1780s. Pillement excelled in his art: oil painting, gouache, pastel, drawing, and also decorative arts. He provided numerous designs for silk, wallpaper, and porcelain manufacturers, contributing significantly to the spread of the Rococo and later Neoclassical styles. His abundant graphic work played a central role in his production and in the circulation of his motifs. Towards the end of his career, Pillement turned more towards inventive landscapes and seascapes, often inspired by great masters of the genre such as Claude-Joseph Vernet. Without ever seeking strict imitation, he offered lighter, more decorative, and atmospheric interpretations. He died in Lyon in 1808, leaving behind an immense body of work characterized by grace, freedom of touch, and a keen sense of composition.