Stadsgezicht op Sint-Winoksbergen (Bergues) 1827 - 1860

Adolphe Rouargue's lithograph, "Stadsgezicht op Sint-Winoksbergen," captures a street view with striking clarity. The composition is dominated by the towering belfry, a vertical thrust that anchors the scene. The artist uses hatching and cross-hatching to define forms and create tonal variations, giving depth to the buildings and figures. Notice the linear precision in the architectural details versus the more fluid rendering of the people and animals, this contrast enlivens the street. The placement of the belfry centrally, framed by the receding street, draws the eye upwards, suggesting a hierarchy of urban life, where architecture symbolizes permanence and order. The townspeople in the foreground provide a human counterpoint, their activities rendered with a gentle touch. Rouargue’s lithograph uses its formal structure to present Bergues as a place where civic identity and daily life are intertwined. This artwork is less about a literal depiction and more about an arrangement of lines and forms that evoke a sense of place.