Fine Art Poster
From £37
A giclée print on 200gsm matte fine art paper, using a twelve-colour process for accurate, fade-resistant colour. Supplied unframed, delivered flat or rolled.
Venice - Gustave Moreau
Regular price
£37.00 GBP
Sale price
£37.00 GBP
Regular price
Archival giclée
Frames arrive ready to hang
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Made to order
Description
A dreamlike Symbolist composition by Gustave Moreau, featuring an allegorical figure and a lion set against a distant, ethereal Venetian horizon.
Gustave Moreau, a central figure in the French Symbolist movement, created this evocative work during a period when he moved away from traditional academic subjects towards highly personal, dreamlike imagery. Venice, rendered here in watercolour and gouache, demonstrates his characteristic approach to layering media to achieve a jewel-like surface quality. The composition features a central female figure, possibly an allegorical representation of the city itself, seated beside a lion. This pairing evokes the Lion of Saint Mark, the traditional symbol of Venice, yet Moreau imbues the scene with a sense of quiet, otherworldly stillness rather than civic triumph.
The figure is adorned in ornate, patterned garments that suggest a fusion of Eastern and Western influences, a common theme in Moreau's oeuvre. Her pose is contemplative, her hand resting gently on the lion, which appears almost as a guardian or a companion in this desolate, watery expanse. In the background, the distant silhouette of Venetian architecture emerges from the horizon, rendered with a light, ethereal touch that contrasts with the more defined forms of the foreground figures. The colour palette is dominated by soft ochres, muted blues, and hints of metallic gold, creating an atmosphere of faded grandeur and historical mystery.
Moreau often utilised such mythological and allegorical subjects to explore themes of solitude and the internal life of the imagination. By placing these figures in a non-specific, dream-like setting, he invites the viewer to look beyond the literal subject matter. The work reflects his meticulous attention to detail, particularly in the rendering of the figure's crown and the textures of the lion's mane. This print captures the delicate balance of his technique, preserving the subtle washes and precise linework that define his unique contribution to nineteenth-century art.
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Because every print is made to order, we don't offer change-of-mind returns, refunds or exchanges. If your order arrives faulty, damaged or incorrect, we'll replace it free of charge — just contact us within 48 hours of delivery. See our refunds page for full details.
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We ship worldwide, printing at the production hub nearest to your delivery address. Delivery times and costs vary by destination — you'll see the options available to you at checkout.
Manufacturing
Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
Care and materials
Specific Features
Every Solis piece is made to order with archival, gallery-quality materials built to last.
- Museum-grade giclée printing for rich, fade-resistant colour
- Archival matte fine-art paper, FSC-certified
- Multiple sizes and framing options available
- Frames in black, natural wood, dark wood or white
- Framed prints arrive ready to hang
Care & Cleaning
To keep your artwork looking its best:
- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
- Avoid prolonged direct sunlight
- Never use liquid cleaners on the print or canvas surface
- Keep in a dry, room-temperature space
- Handle prints with clean, dry hands
Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Complete The Look
Venice - Gustave Moreau
Regular price
From £37.00 GBP
Sale price
From £37.00 GBP
Regular price
Fine Art Poster / Small Square (30x30 cm) / -
Artist Biography
Gustave Moreau
Moreau produced over fifteen thousand works and converted his own house into a museum to hold them. When he died in 1898, the building at 14 rue de la Rochefoucauld in Paris became the Musee Gustave Moreau, exactly as he had planned. Eight thousand paintings, watercolours and drawings hung floor to ceiling in the rooms where he had lived and worked.
He was born in Paris in 1826, a sickly, solitary child who drew compulsively. He trained at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and fell under the influence of Theodore Chasseriau, an eclectic painter whose depictions of enigmatic sea goddesses left a permanent mark. Chasseriau's death in 1856 shook Moreau badly enough to send him to Italy for two years, where he copied Mantegna, Carpaccio and the Venetians, filling notebooks with studies that fed his work for decades.
His breakthrough came at the 1864 Salon with Oedipus and the Sphinx, a painting that fused classical mythology with a strange, jewelled intensity that critics struggled to categorise. He became the foremost Symbolist painter, working in a style guided by what has been called Neo-Platonist faith: a belief that the physical world was imperfect and that art could capture something closer to divine vision. He never married, regarding the career of an artist as "a true priesthood", though he maintained a discreet relationship with Alexandrine Dureux for decades, subsidising an apartment for her near his family home.
As a teacher at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Moreau proved unexpectedly open-minded. His students included Henri Matisse and Georges Rouault, both of whom credited his insistence on personal expression over academic formula. Andre Breton and Salvador Dali later claimed his Symbolist imagery as a direct precursor to Surrealism.
He was born in Paris in 1826, a sickly, solitary child who drew compulsively. He trained at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and fell under the influence of Theodore Chasseriau, an eclectic painter whose depictions of enigmatic sea goddesses left a permanent mark. Chasseriau's death in 1856 shook Moreau badly enough to send him to Italy for two years, where he copied Mantegna, Carpaccio and the Venetians, filling notebooks with studies that fed his work for decades.
His breakthrough came at the 1864 Salon with Oedipus and the Sphinx, a painting that fused classical mythology with a strange, jewelled intensity that critics struggled to categorise. He became the foremost Symbolist painter, working in a style guided by what has been called Neo-Platonist faith: a belief that the physical world was imperfect and that art could capture something closer to divine vision. He never married, regarding the career of an artist as "a true priesthood", though he maintained a discreet relationship with Alexandrine Dureux for decades, subsidising an apartment for her near his family home.
As a teacher at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Moreau proved unexpectedly open-minded. His students included Henri Matisse and Georges Rouault, both of whom credited his insistence on personal expression over academic formula. Andre Breton and Salvador Dali later claimed his Symbolist imagery as a direct precursor to Surrealism.
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Fine Art Framed
From £59
The same fine art print in a solid wood frame with UV-protective acrylic glaze and rigid backing. Five frame colours. Arrives ready to hang.
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