Georges d'Espagnat
La lecture au jardin (Lesson in the Garden)
Circa 1898

About the Item

French Post-Impressionist painter Georges d’Espagnat captures a charming moment between a mother and her child in this vibrant oil on canvas. Rendered with a studied use of complementary colors and bold brushstrokes, the painting showcases the artist's unique Post-Impressionist style. Remembered as one of the most individualistic artists of the 20th century, his distinctive canvases bring together the loose brushwork of the Impressionists and the bold color palette favored by the Fauves. Together, they achieve a vibrant spontaneity that lends itself well to the carefree subjects of the present work. Masterfully composed, La lecture au jardin moves beyond the Impressionist instinct to capture a fleeting moment on canvas. Rather, d'Espagnat succeeds in creating a deep feeling of harmony in the work. Warm colors are perfectly balanced with cool tones, while vertical and horizontal lines are softened by the curves of the foliage and his subjects' figures. Through his simplification of forms and intentional use of color and line, he creates a scene that is carefully designed and thoroughly modern. A similar view of a mother and her child by d'Espagnat is currently in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York). The Post-Impressionist painter was an individualist since his youth, choosing to forgo traditional schooling in order to independently study the Old Masters in the Louvre. He soon became involved with the most prominent Impressionist and Post-Impressionist painters of the age, including Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Paul Signac, who themselves existed outside the traditional norms of French Academic training. In 1891, he exhibited at the Salon des Refusés, and again the following year at the Salon des Indépendants. By 1895, he held his first one-man show in Paris, and just three years later his success earned him a solo show at the prestigious Durand-Ruel Gallery. Between 1905 and 1910 he made several trips to visit Renoir on the Côte d’Azur. Their close friendship resulted in a group exhibition at Marcel Bernheim Gallery in 1907, which included the work of d'Espagnat and Renoir alongside Pierre Bonnard, Paul Cézanne, Henri Matisse, Camille Pissarro and other Impressionist and Post-Impressionist greats. It was during this period that he also extended his artistic reach into the realms of illustration and stage design. In 1906, he illustrated Remy de Gourmont’s popular book Sixtine, and later collaborated with Alphonse Daudet on his book L'Immortel. In 1914 he provided the decor for a production of Alfred de Musset’s play Fantasio at the Théâtre de Batignolles in Paris. In 1920, after working in a camouflage unit during World War I, d’Espagnat bought a country house in the Quercy region, and over the next decade, he painted numerous landscapes and interiors there. Though disrupted by World War II, he continued to paint until his death in 1950. Circa 1898 Canvas: 55 3/4" high x 42" wide Frame: 68" high x 53 1/2" wide References: “Un Décorateur Nouveau: Georges d’Espagnat,” Art et Décoration, Vol. 6, 1899, by O. Maus, p. 122 (illustrated)

Creator:
Georges d'Espagnat (1870-1950, French)
Creation Year:
Circa 1898
Dimensions:
Height: 68 in (172.72 cm)Width: 53.5 in (135.89 cm)
Medium:
Canvas,Oil
Movement & Style:
Post-Impressionist
Period:
Late 19th Century
Condition:
Gallery Location:
New Orleans, LA
Reference Number:
Seller: 31-00081stDibs: LU1867995772
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Georges d'Espagnat

Georges d’Espagnat was born in 1870 in Melun, France. He was a painter, muralist, illustrator and theater designer. His family moved to Paris in the 1880s and at the age of 18 he declined the academic training of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and chose instead to independently study the works of the Old Masters in the Louvre and attend classes at the free academy. In 1891 d’Espagnat began exhibiting at the Salon des Refusees and in the following year exhibited four paintings at the Salon des Independants. He later exhibited at the Salon of the Societe Nationale as well. Although associated with many of the greatest names in 20th century art, and though his work has at various times been identified as Fauve, Nabis or Impressionist, he retained his own individuality. He was influential in the art circles of his time with the likes of Matisse, Gauguin, Picasso, Pissarro and Chagall. d’Espagnat also became closely acquainted with many of the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists including Renoir, Vuillard, Andre, Bonnard and Denis. In 1895 he had his first solo show in Paris and three years later a show at Durand-Ruel Gallery. He was part of a group exhibition in 1907 at the Marcel Bernheim Gallery along with Bonnard, Cezanne, Matisse, Pissarro, Rouault, Suerat and Toulouse-Lautrec while in 1926 his works were a part of another exhibition at the same gallery along with Andre, Bonnard, Braque, Chagall, Matisse, Picasso and Signac. In 1903 d’Espagnat was one of the founding members of the Salon d’Automne and, a year later, became the vice president. In 1906 he collaborated on the illustrations for Remy de Gourmont’s Sixtine, and later worked with Alphonse Daudet on his book, L’Immortel. Traveling extensively throughout his lifetime, D’Espagnat visited Britain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Morocco and Spain. His work can be found in many museums including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; the Musee Royal des Beaux-Arts, Brussels; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Art Institute, Chicago; the Pushkin Museum, Moscow and the Musee d’Orsay.