Restaurabits

Secrets and other curiosities

El puente de Waterloo. André Derain

On the back of artworks

Image with transmitted light of André Derain's “Waterloo Bridge”
Imagen con luz transmitida de la obra de André Derain "El puente de Waterloo"

In this transmitted light image the reverse of the work lit from the front can be made out. It shows how the light shines through the picture and reveals the structure of the brushstrokes Derain used to compose the work. 

In the central area the brushstrokes are light and continuous and leave very little of the canvas of the support exposed. In the upper part of the picture, where the sky is, and in the lower part with the river, the strokes are thickly laden with paint, with very little overlapping, and some distance apart. This confirms Derain’s expressive painting technique. 

Damage suffered by the support is also visible, in this case small holes and a tear in the canvas in the upper left area of the photo, which was repaired with a patch. Labels and inscriptions revealing the places to which the painting has travelled and its provenance can also be seen. 

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Detail of the brushstroke of André Derain's “The Bridge of Waterloo” in raking light
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A mosaic of brushstrokes

Derain’s Waterloo Bridge is an ensemble of vivid colours applied in a sort of mosaic of loose brushstrokes that leave the canvas with its pale ground visible in places as an innovative pictorial device.
Detail of the english Winsor & Newton stamp, printed on the back of André Derain's “Waterloo Bridge”
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London or Paris? The origin of Derain’s painting

Derain painted Waterloo Bridge on a linen canvas, the back of which displays the stamp of the prestigious London brand Winsor & Newton. Its discovery during the technical study raised a question: did the artist paint the work in London, or did he take the canvas back with him to Paris and paint it there? 

 
Image of the reverse of Corot's artwork “Interior of the Church of Mantes”, 1865 - 1870
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The secret face of artworks

Did you know that the stamps, inscriptions and labels we often find on the back of paintings reveal key aspects of the artworks? An example is Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot’s Interior of the Church at Mantes. These details, which are hidden to viewers, provide us with very valuable information.
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