# Maxime Camille Louis Maufra artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/maxime-camille-louis-maufra/
Profile generated: 2026-05-08T11:24:00.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1861-05-17
- Death date: 1918-05-23
- Nationality: French
- Movements: Pont-Aven School, Post-Impressionism
- Common media: oil painting, etching, lithography, pastel, gouache, drawing

## About Maxime Camille Louis Maufra

Maxime Camille Louis Maufra (1861–1918) was a French painter, etcher, and lithographer best known for landscape and marine subjects, particularly the rugged coastline and countryside of Brittany. Born in Nantes, Maufra initially pursued a commercial career before devoting himself fully to art around 1890. He became closely associated with the Pont-Aven artists' colony in Brittany, where he worked alongside figures connected to the Post-Impressionist and Synthetist currents. Maufra returned to Pont-Aven annually, and the Breton environment remained central to his output throughout his career. Working across oil painting, pastel, gouache, etching, and lithography, he developed a distinctive style blending naturalistic observation with bold color and structured composition. His works are held by institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and Tate in London.

## Common works and media

Collectors most frequently encounter Maufra through oil-on-canvas or oil-on-panel Breton landscapes and seascapes, often depicting harbors, rocky coastlines, or rural villages. He also produced a substantial body of etchings and lithographs, many showing similar Breton and maritime subjects. Pastels and gouaches of coastal views and countryside scenes round out his commonly seen output. Works are typically signed 'Maufra' and date from the 1890s through the 1910s.

## Market and appraisal context

Maufra's works appear regularly at auction, with over 500 lots documented in the Appraisily database. Oil paintings of Breton coastal and rural landscapes form the core of his auction market, while his etchings and lithographs are more accessible entry points for collectors. Key valuation factors include medium (oils versus works on paper), subject matter, provenance, condition, and whether a work can be firmly placed within his recognized Pont-Aven period. No single catalogue raisonné governs attribution, so provenance documentation and comparison with museum-held examples are important for authentication. The 1986 monograph by D. Morane remains a standard reference.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine identity research from museum records, library authority files, and biographical sources with auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. This page draws on data from the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History, Getty ULAN, VIAF, the Library of Congress, MoMA, Tate, and Wikidata.

## Sources

- RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/54093
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/54166372/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/nr88003982
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1856520
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500020892
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/3849
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/maxime-maufra-1595
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxime_Maufra