The Palace of the Popes and Pont d’Avignon

Carroll Beckwith, The Palace of the Popes and Pont d'Avignon, 1911, oil on wood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from Cooper-Hewitt Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Smithsonian Institution, 1974.69.10
Carroll Beckwith, The Palace of the Popes and Pont d'Avignon, 1911, oil on wood, 8 345 12 in. (22.214.0 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from Cooper-Hewitt Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Smithsonian Institution, 1974.69.10
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Artwork Details

Title
The Palace of the Popes and Pont d’Avignon
Date
1911
Dimensions
8 345 12 in. (22.214.0 cm.)
Credit Line
Transfer from Cooper-Hewitt Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Smithsonian Institution
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on wood
Classifications
Subjects
  • Cityscape — France — Avignon
  • Landscape — river — Avignon River
  • Architecture — bridge — Pont d’Avignon
  • Architecture Exterior — classical — aqueduct
  • Architecture Exterior — castle — Palace of Popes
Object Number
1974.69.10

Artwork Description

This painting shows a view of the pope’s palace in Avignon, across the east bank of the Rhône River in southeastern France. From 1309 until the French Revolution, Avignon belonged to the papacy, a remnant of the schism that once left Europe with two popes, one in Rome and another in Avignon. On the left side of the painting is a Roman aqueduct, a reminder that the Roman Empire once extended into France. In 1910, Carroll Beckwith traveled through several towns in France, painting dozens of scenes like this one and capturing the effects of light and color on buildings, statues, and water.

Works by this artist (4 items)

Ernest Trova, "Whatever liberates our spirit without giving us self-control is disastrous."--Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1749-1832. From the series Great Ideas of Western Man., 1963, oil and pencil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Container Corporation of America, 1984.124.292
Whatever liberates our spirit without giving us self…
Date1963
oil and pencil on canvas
Not on view
Ernest Trova, Falling Man Manscape, from the portfolio Falling Man Manscapes, 1970, screenprint on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the National Endowment for the Arts, 1988.18.56
Falling Man Manscape, from the portfolio Falling Man…
Date1970
screenprint on paper
Not on view
Ernest Trova, FM/5' AWF #3, 1986, stainless steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Philip Samuels Fine Art and museum purchase made possible by Mary W. Cure, 1990.17
FM/5′ AWF #3
Date1986
stainless steel
Not on view
Ernest Trova, Reclining Nude, 1957, casein latex on board, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Philip Samuels Fine Art and museum purchase made possible by Mary W. Cure, 1990.33
Reclining Nude
Date1957
casein latex on board
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

William M. S. Doyle, Portrait of a Lady, 1810, watercolor on ivory, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Catherine Walden Myer Fund, 1954.6.3
Portrait of a Lady
Date1810
watercolor on ivory
Not on view
Unidentified (Puerto Rican), Da. Barbara Vizcarrondo de Elzaburu, 19th century, watercolor on ivory, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Teodoro Vidal Collection, 1996.91.20
Da. Barbara Vizcarrondo de Elzaburu
Artist
Unidentified (Puerto Rican)
Date19th century
watercolor on ivory
Not on view
George Catlin, Portrait of Mary Catlin, ca. 1827, watercolor on ivory, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David C. Morse, 1984.139.2
Portrait of Mary Catlin
Dateca. 1827
watercolor on ivory
Not on view
Unidentified, Portrait of a Gentleman, ca. 1805, watercolor on ivory, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of Mary Elizabeth Spencer, 1999.27.59.1
Portrait of a Gentleman
Artist
Unidentified
Dateca. 1805
watercolor on ivory
Not on view