Sardine Fishermen Departing for Tréboul, from Breton Landscapes

Sardine Fishermen Departing for Tréboul, from Breton Landscapes — Henri Rivière. 1893.

Medium: color woodcut printed from 12 blocks. Dimensions: Sheet: 35 x 52.2 cm (13 3/4 x 20 9/16 in.); Image: 23 x 35.1 cm (9 1/16 x 13 13/16 in.).

Collection record: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland. Museum connection according to this source; current display unverified.

This print belongs to a series made after one of Henri Rivière’s many trips to the rural French coast in Brittany. The subject and flattened perspective of the image, which depicts sailors preparing to harvest fish, were deeply influenced by Japanese woodblock prints. Rivière deliberately emulated the techniques of these works, carving individual blocks for each color that were carefully aligned and separately printed using traditional Japanese tools. Because of this work’s especially complicated composition and color palette, its creation required a total of 12 blocks.

Source: official collection record. Metadata selected and normalized by Artline from the source export, accessed 10 September 2026; no museum endorsement. Reproduction rights are separate.