Maxime Maufra

Unlike many of the artists of the Pont Aven School, Maxime Maufra was Breton, born in Nantes in 1861. Self-taught, he exhibited some of his paintings in the Paris Salon of 1886 and four years later he gave up his career in business to become a full-time artist. Maufra first met Gauguin in Pont-Aven in 1890. He moved to Montmartre in 1892 and began to experiment with printmaking under the tutelage of Eugène Delâtre, who also printed many of his plates. Although Felix Bracquemond was an early influence, Maufra’s style developed most through his contact with Gauguin and the artists of his circle in Brittany between 1893 and 1895. Printmaking was a relaxing outlet for the artist, bringing relief from the pressure he felt to produce paintings under his contractual obligations to the Parisian dealer Durand-Ruel. Despite this, Maufra was a knowledgeable printmaker who mastered complicated printmaking techniques. Many of his prints exist in several states, which bears testament to his interest in experimentation and his drive to achieve perfection.