Jacques Cordier (Bois-Colombes, 1937 – Lyon, 1975) trained by looking at the 19th-century landscape tradition. He made his debut with drawing, for which he showed a natural inclination from a young age, and in his early works in ink he mainly depicted views of Paris and its surroundings, but also landscapes of Normandy and Brittany.

During the 1960s, however, his painting gradually opened up to color: a more evident chromatic temperament emerged, accentuated by the move to Saint-Tropez with his wife Simone, and by the influence of the light of Var and the Mediterranean. A decisive turning point occurred in 1971, when Jacques Cordier and Simone visited the Tate Gallery during a stay in London. The direct comparison with the work of William Turner (1775–1851), a precursor of plein air painting and tireless student of light, brought about a profound change in the artist's creative process.

The focus of the exhibition is precisely on this phase, presenting mainly oil paintings on canvas that witness a progressive dilution of forms in light: the subjects, while remaining recognizable, dissolve into chromatic vibrations where water, sky, and architecture merge. Starting from the couple's annual stays in Venice, between 1971 and 1975, a series of works takes shape in which the misty light of the lagoon becomes the absolute protagonist. Beyond representation, what remains is the impression: the wind swirling through the atmosphere and the incessant movement of water.