Moulin De Saint-Mitre, Près De Martigues 1890 - 1895

Curator: Here we have Félix Ziem's oil painting, "Moulin De Saint-Mitre, Près De Martigues," created sometime between 1890 and 1895. Editor: That’s a beautiful vista—tranquil yet kind of weathered. Makes me think of lonely windmills, creaking stories into the endless blue sky. Curator: Ziem was known for his landscapes and marine scenes, and this piece certainly exemplifies that. It’s interesting to consider how his depictions of the Mediterranean contributed to a romanticized vision of the region. Editor: Romanticized is right! I mean, it’s almost dreamlike with that soft light. That lone windmill is totally a symbol, right? Of resilience, or maybe fading tradition? I am thinking that windmill represents all windmills across the lands. Curator: Symbolism is certainly up for interpretation. The setting itself, Martigues, was gaining popularity with artists at the time, drawn by its rustic charm and light. What seems initially like an idyllic landscape becomes tied to developing tourist culture of the time. Editor: Ah, the paradox of the picturesque! So, artists flocking to capture its “authenticity” were in the process changing it, I imagine. The water and wind—natural, untouched—but this particular scene will be changed because of the presence of an observer… I like this detail because in one way or another is true of all that there is. Curator: Exactly. Consider also the context in which paintings of such landscapes circulated: predominantly amongst a bourgeois urban class, offering a taste of rural escape. The art market played a huge part in creating an appetite for idealized landscape paintings. Editor: That hits different—the painting as both a product and shaper of desires for escape! Yet, divorced from those forces, I would be lying to you saying this has captured me. Curator: I appreciate you noting the immediate impact. Thinking about it all now, hopefully it opens the artwork for different approaches, too. Editor: Absolutely. It’s still a darn beautiful windmill on a pretty picture.