Watercolour 9

Port Vendres Quai des Douanes

1925 – 1926

28 x 39.6 cm

The British Museum, London

The vantage point

We are on the east shore of the port, on the Pierre Forgas Quay. The support is situated not far from the building that was the Hotel du Commerce, where the Mackintosh couple stayed during their holiday in the region.

We are looking in a east-south-easterly direction.

This watercolour depicts the Customs (Douanes)  Quay, which is on the other side of the harbour. Nowadays this is called the Republic (République) Quay. The buildings which border this quay used to serve as warehouses.

Nowadays these buildings have been transformed into buildings for the customs service, private apartments and restaurants.

The wharf is used for docking private cruisers and heritage vessels passing through Port-Vendres, as well as three tuna vessels from Port-Vendres (which go out for only two weeks a year).

Pictorial analysis

  1. “The Mackintoshs would have seen this very straightforward view of the port buildings on the Quai de la Douane every time they left the Hotel du Commerce. Mackintosh’s vantage point was perhaps one of its balconies. The foreground buildings were warehouses for wood, wine and other cargo. Mackintosh commented on the quantity of imported wine coming into the port: ‘This port is getting simply a deposit for Spanish Wine – it comes in so many boats that they cant (sic) clear it away in time for the next arrivals to discharge’. “ Translated from the English with the kind permission of the author, Professor Pamela Robertson – University of Glasgow
  2. The general rhythm of this watercolour is dominated by the vertical reflections, whose surface takes up almost half of the whole picture. One remarks on the absence of sky, the gaze of the spectator thus concentrates on the architecture and reflections. The whole is worked with a palette  which expertly combines warm and cool colours, greys and more vivid colors.

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