Jean-Baptiste Henri DURAND-BRAGER
 (Dol, 1814 - Paris, 1879)

 View of the Rocca San Nicola in Licata in Sicily
 Oil on panel of the Old House
 Monogrammed lower left and located on the back

 22 x 35 cm

 Painter of seascapes and military subjects
 First a student of GUDIN, he then entered the studio of ISABEY after having carried out several long-distance campaigns, he traveled Europe, then Algeria, Senegal and the Atlantic coasts of Africa. In 1840, he was attached to the expedition responsible for bringing back to France, the ashes of Napoleon I. He was decorated with the Knight's Cross of the Legion of Honor in 1844 and became an officer in 1865. He returned to France at the end of 1843 and was entrusted the following year with two state commissions. Later, he painted for the Tsar of Russia and the Emperor of Austria (1886). He also published several albums on the navy.
 His students were Charles Euphrasie KUWASSEG and Edouard ADAM.
 He is now buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery (31st division)

 Museums: Bordeaux, Laval, Nantes, Versailles

 The composition, painted from the beach, shows the islet of Rocca San Nicola located in the municipality of Licata in Sicily.
 The island, which is little more than a rock, is separated from Sicily by only 120 meters and encloses a strip of sea known for its beauty, clean, clear and rich in fish.
 Traces of human settlement dating back to Greco-Roman antiquity are present on the islet, traced into the rock itself.
 At the bottom of the strip of sea, on the rocks, a Madonna has been installed at the precise location where the ancient remains of commercial ships stranded after seeking shelter during bad weather were found.