Collection du Musée Alexis Forel

 

This collection of Italian, Flemish and French engravings was assembled by Alexis Forel (1852-1922), a chemical engineer turned engraver from Vaud, and was deposited in the Cabinet cantonal des estampes by the Alexis Forel Museum in Morges in 1988.

 

An art lover, Forel acquired over a hundred works by Dürer, Rembrandt, Millet, etc. during his lifetime. A defender of the autonomy of the print, he collected artists who gave the art of engraving its letters of nobility. The collection of this artist-amateur, a laboratory and reference tool, brings together the most representative prints of the many technical issues raised by intaglio printing. As an aquafortist, he mainly collected etchings, but his eclecticism also led him to take an interest in other processes such as woodcutting and burin (da Capri, Dürer). This collection, which reveals the artist’s tastes and influences, also bears witness to his relations with contemporary engravers (Millet, Buhot, etc.).

 

Since 2010, the collections have been enriched by several donations and bequests of modern and contemporary prints, thus opening a new chapter in the history of the Musée Alexis Forel. Completed after Forel’s death by donations and purchases, this collection offers a special insight into the history of engraving from the 16th to the 19th century.

 

President of the Musée Alexis Forel Association: Alain Colombara
Curator: Yvan Schwab