Pontoise. Église St. Maclou
Eugène Atget
French, 1857–1927
1902
An albumen silver print made in 1902 by Eugène Atget that quietly records the carved doorway and stonework of Église St. Maclou in Pontoise as part of his project to document Paris’s older streets and buildings.
The calm, empty street and the photograph’s crisp rendering—from the gothic arched portal and fluted columns to the repeating iron railings—pull your eye across the tactile textures of stone and the measured play of light and shadow.
Atget turned documentary photography into a poetic form of preservation, creating an influential visual archive of urban detail that reshaped how photographers and artists value everyday architecture.
Medium
Albumen silver print
Dimensions
Approx. 6 1/2 × 8 1/2" (16.5 × 21.6 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Abbott-Levy Collection. Acquired through the generosity of Shirley C. Burden, and Family of Man Fund
Accession
1.1969.1235
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
