The Breaking Waves, Tide of September 1901, 1901. In the 1880s, Lep?re was an early exponent of the woodcut as a fine art medium, experimenting with the technique and exhibiting his prints. His example probably encouraged Henri Rivi?re to produce woodcuts in the Japanese manner (see Wave in the Rain). In fact, Lep?re and Rivi?re created the first French colour woodcuts conceived and printed entirely in imitation of Japanese woodcut techniques. By 1890, woodcut would be taken up by the sculptor Aristide Maillol and such painters as F?lix Vallotton and Paul Gauguin, and by 1895, a full-scale revival was underway.