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Period: 19th Century
Au Bord Du Ruisseau By William-Adolphe Bouguereau
Located in New Orleans, LA
William-Adolphe Bouguereau
1825-1905 French
Au Bord du Ruisseau
Signed and dated “W-Bouguereau-1888” (upper left)
Oil on Canvas
“Bouguereau’s paintings of children allowed for th...
Category
Academic 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The Andalusia
Located in Missouri, MO
The Andalusia
John Frederick Herring (English, 1795-1865)
Signed Lower Right
14 x 18 inches
18 x 22 inches with frame
Provenance: Frost &Reed, Ltd., London 1984
Herring, born in London in 1795, was the son of a London merchant of Dutch parentage, who had been born overseas in America. The first eighteen years of Herring's life were spent in London, where his greatest interests were drawing and horses.[2] In the year 1814, at the age of 18, he moved to Doncaster in the north of England, arriving in time to witness the Duke of Hamilton's "William" win the St. Leger Stakes horserace. By 1815, Herring had married Ann Harris; his sons John Frederick Herring Jr., Charles Herring, and Benjamin Herring were all to become artists, while his two daughters, Ann and Emma, both married painters. When she was barely of age in 1845 Ann married Harrison Weir.
In Doncaster, England, Herring was employed as a painter of inn...
Category
English School 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The Rug Merchant, 19th Century Orientalist Oil Signed Oil Painting, 1879
Located in London, GB
Oil on canvas, signed and dated '1879' bottom right
Image size: 38 x 59 1/2 inches (96.5 x 151 cm)
Ornate Orientalist style gilt frame
Carl Werner
Carl Friedrich Heinrich Werner wa...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Otto Theodore Gustav Lingner, Oriental female nude, bride dancing with a Sword
Located in Berlin, DE
Otto Theodore Gustav Lingner, Oriental female nude dancing with a sword,
Dimensions without frame 80 cm x 136 cm
Measures with frame 102cm x 157cm
An outstanding work of art by Ott...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Mid-day, Zuni Village
By Frank Reed Whiteside
Located in Missouri, MO
Mid-day, Zuni Village, 1897
By. Frank Reed Whiteside (American, 1866-1929)
Unframed: 20" x 30"
Framed: 28" x 38"
Frank Reed Whiteside, born in Philadelphia on 20 August 1867, became a student of Thomas Anshutz at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1888-92). He already began exhibiting there during his student years (1887-98). In 1893, he enrolled in the Académie Julian in Paris where he received instruction from Jean-Paul Laurens and Benjamin Constant. After his French academic training, Whiteside taught art in Philadelphia high schools. He took frequent trips to the Southwest between 1890 and 1928 to live with and paint the Zuni Indians. Whiteside depicted ceremonial dances, Zuni buildings, and other genre scenes, usually in blinding afternoon sunlight. He carefully observed the effects of light on vibrant color, using a finely crafted impressionist technique. He was fond of broad areas of color, subtle combinations of hues, and simplified shapes and silhouettes. Whiteside continued to exhibit at the PAFA (1905-15), at the Art Institute of Chicago (1896-1916), at the Carnegie International (1905 and 1907) and at the Corcoran Gallery (1907). He was a member of Philadelphia art societies and beginning in 1909 had a summer studio in Ogunquit, Maine, where he took part in Hamilton Easter Field's discussion groups. Frank's wife, Clara Walker Whiteside, who published Touring New England in 1926, was active in the Ogunquit Art Association.
Like Stanford White, Frank Reed Whiteside was the victim of murder, on 19 September 1929, but Whiteside's case remains unsolved. One night, the sixty-three year-old painter answered the doorbell. Two witnesses...
Category
Other Art Style 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Impressionist Figurative painting of two girls, beach, green, sea ‘Between Us’
Located in Shrewsbury, Shropshire
‘Between Us’ is an Impressionist Figurative painting by Robert Gemmell Hutchison R.S.A. It is highly evocative of the Scottish Coast, a hopeful and optimistic oil painting.
Hutchinson was born in Edinburgh in 1855 the first son of a brass-founder. After first training as a seal-engraver he was encouraged to pursue oil painting and trained under James Campbell Noble at the Trustees Academy on Picardy Place. He set up his own studio at 1 India Buildings (at the top of Victoria Street...
Category
Impressionist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
Children at the Seashore
By Josef Israels
Located in Missouri, MO
Children at the Seashore
By Josef Israels (1824-1911)
Unframed: 9" x 15"
Framed: 17.5" x 23.5"
Signed Lower Left
Born in Groningen, Holland, in 1824, Josef Israels was brought up in the traditions of the Jewish faith and destined for the rabbinate. His interest in drawing grew stronger with age however, and in 1840 his father finally relented, sending him to Amsterdam. There he spent his days working in the studio of Jan Kruseman and his evenings painting at the Royal Academy under Jan Pieneman, both leading portrait painters. In Paris, Israels studied a short time with the historical painter Francois Picot...
Category
Realist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
"Filipino Girl Coming Down the Steps", 19th Century by Artist Fabian de la Rosa
Located in Madrid, ES
FABIAN DE LA ROSA
Filipino, 1869 - 1937
"FILIPINO GIRLO COMING DOWN THE STEPS"
signed & dated "F. de la Rosa, 1894" (lower right)
oil on canvas
42-3/4 x 23-3/4 inches (108 x 60...
Category
Realist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
"Filipino Farm Workers in Horse Carriage" 19th C. Oil on Canvas by F. de la Rosa
Located in Madrid, ES
FABIAN DE LA ROSA
Filipino, 1869 - 1937
FILIPINO FARM WORKERS IN HORSE CARRIAGE
signed & dated "F. de la Rosa, 1894" (lower left)
oil on canvas
42-3/4 x 2...
Category
Realist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Bean Picking, New Jersey, 1890
Located in Missouri, MO
Bean Picking, New Jersey, 1890
By. Frederick Rondel (1826-1892)
Signed Lower Right
Unframed: 21.5" x 35.5"
Framed: 32" x 46"
Frederick Rondel, born in Paris in 1826, came to America...
Category
French School 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Scroll painting of the American ship commanded by Commodore Matthew Perry
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Attributed to Ukita Ikkei (1795-1859)
Hanging scroll painting of the American ship commanded by Commodore Matthew Perry in Uraga Bay, annotate...
Category
Edo 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paper, Ink
'La Feria' 19th Century large figurative scene of a middle eastern market
Located in Shrewsbury, Shropshire
'La Feria' a very busy figurative middle eastern market scene with various characters. Jewellery seller, women, children and animals.
John Haynes-William...
Category
Impressionist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Young girl from Tetouan, Morocco
Located in New Orleans, LA
Young girl from Tetouan, Morocco
Signed (center right)
Oil on canvas
In this important oil on canvas, French Orientalist painter Charles Landelle captures the engaging visage of a young Moroccan woman in a moment of tranquil contemplation. Seated on the floor of what is almost certainly an opulent riad, the young woman wears an intricately embroidered Moroccan kaftan and headdress. The sumptuous patterns on the floor and in the background lend an additional warmth to the strikingly vivid red hues which dominate the composition and are a hallmark of Landelle’s work.
The symbols behind the young woman may represent either the Jewish Star of David or the Islamic Seal...
Category
Academic 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Passage Along the Shore
Located in New York, NY
Passage Along the Shore by Victor Pierre Huguet (1835-1902)
Oil on canvas
15 x 23 inches unframed (38.1 x 58.42 cm)
21 x 29 inches framed (53.34 x 73.66 cm)
Signed on bottom right
Description:
In this piece, Victor Pierre Huguet depicts five men traveling...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
La Danse pyrrhique (Pyrrhic Dance)
Located in New Orleans, LA
This painting by Jean-Léon Gérôme entitled La Danse pyrrhique is among the most fascinating compositions ever composed by the Academic master’s hand. Gérôme’s iconic scenes of the East captivated a generation, and this work showcases all of the artist’s unparalleled talents. Set in the Ptolemaic period of Ancient Egypt, its depiction of the ritual Pyrrhic dance is vivid and striking. Beautifully painted and rich with detail, it represents the best of Gérôme’s famed Orientalist scenes.
In La Danse pyrrhique, Gérôme gives us a dramatic rendering of this ancient war dance. Greek in origin, it was performed by costumed dancers armed with swords who completed a series of movements set to music pantomiming combat. Homer wrote that Achilles performed this dance in a show of respect and grief at the funeral of his friend, Patroclus. When Julius Caesar introduced it to the Roman Games, its popularity spread across the Roman Empire to include Egypt, where Gérôme’s composition is set.
Gérôme visited Egypt for the first time in 1856, and he returned throughout the late 19th century when this work was created. Gérôme’s first-hand familiarity with this setting is evident in this piece, and his visual narrative is unlike any other. His paintings combine the rationalist style of historical paintings and the theatrical...
Category
Academic 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Après le bain (After the bath)
Located in New Orleans, LA
For Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Impressionism's pre-eminent figure painter, depicting the nude was an exercise in bringing the canvas to life. He once said, “I look at a nude, I see myriads of minuscule shades. I have to find those which will make the flesh on my canvas come to life and resonate.” This compelling portrait by Renoir entitled Après le bain presents the nude figure of a woman in a serene, private moment, absorbed in the task of drying herself after a bath. The artist’s mastery of light and shading is incredible, achieving a sense of vitality in this otherwise ordinary scene.
Renoir is celebrated for his figural work, especially his Rubenesque female nudes, however, it was not until the artist was in his forties that he depicted the nude with any frequency. In 1881, Renoir traveled to Italy, where he studied the works of the Renaissance masters and the ancient art of Pompeii and Rome. Upon his return to France, the nude became his favored subject, and he used the motif to combine the spontaneity of Impressionism with the solid modeling of classical painting. Renoir’s medium here, sanguine, a reddish-brown chalk, was used extensively in the Renaissance by Leonardo (who employed it in his sketches for the Last Supper), Michelangelo and Raphael. Its warm hue lends itself well to depicting flesh, and the chalk drawing allows for a greater focus on line, form and texture in a departure from the aspects of color and light that so often preoccupied the Impressionists. Après le bain conveys the impression of arrested motion with perfect naturalness, deftly capturing the moment before the elegant lines of the sitter's form change position.
The sitter is almost certainly Gabrielle Renard, the nanny to Renoir’s children and a frequent model for the artist. Gabrielle was the cousin of Renoir’s wife, Aline, and came to Montmartre to work for the family at the age of 16. She developed a strong bond with the family and became a favorite subject for Renoir, appearing in several of his most important works, including his 1911 Gabrielle with a Rose (Musée d'Orsay). When Renoir began to suffer from severe rheumatoid arthritis that would eventually leave him unable to walk and scarcely able to grasp a paintbrush, it was Gabrielle that would assist the artist by positioning the paintbrush between his crippled fingers.
Born in Limoges, France in 1841, Renoir began his career as an apprentice to a painter of porcelain wares. He later moved to Paris at the age of 21, enrolling at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts. It was here, while studying under Charles Gleyre, that Renoir attained a tremendous appreciation for the academic style of painting, a quality that would last throughout his career. This was also when he met Claude Monet and several other classmates, with whom he would later form the Impressionists.
Working closely with Monet, Renoir began experimenting with the portrayal of light and its effect on his canvases. The youngest member of the Impressionist movement, an astute Renoir recognized how a subject was constantly changing due to the dynamic effects of light on color. Relying heavily upon his academic training that focused on composition, lines and descriptive details, Renoir distinguished himself among his contemporaries. His intuitive use of color and expansive brushstroke, along with acute attention to his subject, have placed him among the finest painters in history.
This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the work of Pierre-Auguste Renoir from the Wildenstein Plattner Institute.
Circa 1898
Canvas: 43 1/2" high x 35 1/2" wide
Frame: 57 3/4" high x 49 1/4" wide
Provenance:
Galerie Durand-Ruel, Paris (acquired from the artist on January 25, 1899)
J. Pereire Collection, France (1966)
Sam Salz, New York (before 1981)
Claus Virch, Paris
French Compagny, Inc., New York
Larry Silverstein, New York (circa January 1987)
Le Clos de Sierne Gallery, Geneva
Galerie Heyram, Paris (October 1987)
Francis Gross
M.S. Rau, New Orleans
Literature:
B. Schneider, Renoir, Berlin, 1957, p. 95 (illustrated in color, p. 83)
M. Gauthier, Renoir, Paris, 1958, p. 83 (illustrated in color; erroneously dated '1916' and titled 'Woman in her toilet')
F. Fosca, Renoir, L'homme et son obra, Paris, 1961, p. 280 (illustrated, p. 95; erroneously dated 'about 1890' and titled 'After the Bath...
Category
Impressionist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Paper, Chalk
The Columbian Exhibition, the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair
Located in Saratoga Springs, NY
Thaddeus Welch (American 1844-1919)
The Columbian Exhibition, the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair
70 x 35”, oil on board signed
Request Price
The C...
Category
Hudson River School 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Board
Baigneuses (Bathers)
By Louis-Joseph Courtat
Located in New Orleans, LA
French Academic painter Louis-Joseph Courtat displays his mastery of composition and the female form in this entrancing oil on canvas. Entitled Baigneuses, the work was painted for and exhibited at the 1885 Paris Salon, the foremost exhibition of painters in the Western world. Large in size, it captures two nude bathers within a tranquil beach scene. While the artist's skill for landscape painting is on display, it is his command of form, light and color that bring this canvas to life. The artist specialized in paintings that glorified the nude, and his skill is clear in the luminosity of his models' skin and the classical beauty of their form and proportions.
With their soft, undulating curves and flowing hair, Courtat's models reflect the two key influences on the young painter, that of the great Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres as well as his teacher Alexandre Cabanel. Like these two greats who came before him, Courtat similarly follows in the artistic tradition of the female nude that is traceable to classical antiquity and the Italian Renaissance.
Born in Paris in 1847, Courtat studied at the famed École des Beaux-Arts under Cabanel. He was one of the Academic master's first students at the school, where he began to teach in 1864. Displaying considerable skill at an early age, Courtat won the Prix de Rome around 1870, and subsequently studied in Rome for a number of years. He returned to Paris in 1873 to make his debut at the Salon, where he was met with immediate success, receiving a third class medal. He received medals again in 1874 and 1875, a remarkable achievement for a painter of his age. In addition to the monumental nudes...
Category
Academic 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The Crossing
Located in New York, NY
The Crossing, 1855, by Theodore Frere (1814-1888)
Oil on wood panel
9 x 14 inches unframed (22.86 x 35.56 cm)
17 ¾ x 22 ½ inches framed (45.085 x 57.15 cm...
Category
Academic 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Departure of the Caravan
Located in New York, NY
Departure of the Caravan, 1834-1887, by Theodore Frere (1814-1888)
Oil on wood
10 x 16 inches unframed (25.4 x 40.64 cm)
18 ¾ x 24 ¾ inches framed (47.625 x 62.865 cm)
Signed on bott...
Category
Academic 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
The Reading Lesson
Located in Missouri, MO
Bernard Pothast
"The Reading Lesson"
Oil on Canvas
Signed Lower Right
25 x 30 inches
30.5 x 35.5 inches framed
Born in Belgium, Bernard Pothast travel...
Category
Dutch School 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Italian Panel with Satyr and Nymphs
Located in New Orleans, LA
This extraordinary Italian gouache and oil on canvas brings two of the most popular characters from Greek mythology vividly the life - the nymph and the satyr. Both creatures are famed for their carefree natures and lascivious temperaments, and tales abound of satyrs pursing nubile nymphs in order to rape or seduce them, usually with little success. One such narrative humorously unfolds in the present piece, which depicts an indignant satyr captured by three nymphs with a golden net.
The relationship between these two mythological creatures was a popular one for artists throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, though its origins stretch back to antiquity. Both satyrs and nymphs...
Category
Other Art Style 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil, Gouache
Readying for Play
Located in Missouri, MO
Framed Size: 25.5 x 23 inches
Joseph Gyselinckx was born in 1817. He was a genre painter in Antwerp. The artist was a student of F. de Brakeleer. He had two paintings included in ...
Category
Realist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Gossips, A Venetian Scene
Located in Austin, TX
Title: "Gossips, A Venetian Scene"
Artist: Francis William Topham
Medium: Oil paint on paper
Size: 7.75" x 6.5"
Period: 19th Century
Framed
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Archival Paper
Antique oil Painting by "Jordan". Oil on Canvas. Portrait of an old Gentleman.
Located in Berlin, DE
Antique oil painting by "Jordan". Oil on canvas. Portrait of an old gentleman.
Dimensions with frame 55 cm x 61 cm.
Dimensions without frame 34 cm x 4...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
French landscape painting with children, figures & field Scene 'The Harvest'
Located in Shrewsbury, Shropshire
'The Harvest' is a stunning pastoral scene by Victor Gabriel Gilbert.
Victor Gabriel Gilbert was born in Paris, 13th February 1847. He studied for a perio...
Category
Impressionist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
'Marchande de Fleurs' a Parisian street scene with soldier, figures & flowercart
Located in Shrewsbury, Shropshire
'Marchande de Fleurs' a Parisian street scene with soldier, figures & beautiful flower-cart
Gabriel Gilbert was renowned for his paintings of Parisian market scenes, of which this is a fantastic example. Gilbert’s works sit alongside Monet’s and Van Gogh’s in galleries and collections across the world.
He established himself as a painter of French genre scenes...
Category
Impressionist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
Mother and Children
Located in Missouri, MO
Bernard DeHoog (1867-1943)
"Mother and Children"
Oil on Canvas
Signed Lower Left
Site Size: approx. 32.5 x 39.5 inches
Framed Size: approx. 39 x ...
Category
Realist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Painting of a river scene with nude bathers surrounded by green 'Les Baigneuse'
Located in Shrewsbury, Shropshire
A lush verdant painting of three nude bathers in a French river. It speaks of summer days spent wild swimming, picnics filled with cheese & wine and hear...
Category
Impressionist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Mischief, 19th Century British School Signed Oil
Located in London, GB
British School
19th Century
Mischief
Oil on canvas
Image size: 30 x 25 inches
Signed and inscribed indistinctly
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Breton Chores
Located in Missouri, MO
Clement Nye Swift
"Breton Chores" 1870
Oil on Canvas
Signed and Dated Lower Right
Canvas Size: approx 27 x18 inches
Framed Size: approx 34 x 35 inches
Provenance: Private Midwes...
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
A Lovely Reflection
Located in Missouri, MO
Auguste Toulmouche (1829-1890)
"A Lovely Reflection" 1874
Oil on Panel
Signed and Dated Lower Left
Site Size: approx 17 x 14 inches
Framed SIze: approx. 27.5 x 24 inches
Provenan...
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
In the Study
By Hans Hamza
Located in Missouri, MO
Hans Hamza (Austrian 1879-1945)
In the Study
Oil on Panel
Signed
Site Size: approx. 8 x 6 inches
Framed Size: approx. 14 x 12 inches
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
Épanouissement
Located in Missouri, MO
KPM Porcelain
After Angelo Asti (French, 1847-1903)
"Épanouissement" c. 1900
With Original Gold Gilded Frame
Image Size: approx. 6 x 4 inches
Framed Size: approx. 9 x 6 inches
Eve...
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Porcelain, Oil
Queen Louise
Located in Missouri, MO
KPM Porcelain
"Queen Louise" c. late 19th century
Original Hand-Painted Porcelain
Signed "R. Dittrich"
Since 250 years, the royal sceptre brand stands fo...
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Porcelain, Oil
Marguerite
Located in Missouri, MO
Marguerite
Hand Painted Porcelain
w/crown stamp #107
Signed "Wagner"
Original Gilded Florentine Frame
approx 6 x 4 inches /approx 14 x 8 inches framed
Since 250 years, the royal sc...
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Porcelain, Oil
Napoleon
Located in Missouri, MO
Sevres 19th C.
Original Hand Painted Porcelain
Signed "G Poitevin"
approx 9 x 5 inches/15 x 12 framed
The vast and diverse production of the Sèvres factory in the nineteenth century resists easy characterization, and its history during this period reflects many of the changes affecting French society in the years between 1800 and 1900. Among the remarkable accomplishments of the factory was the ability to stay continuously in the forefront of European ceramic production despite the myriad changes in technology, taste, and patronage that occurred during this tumultuous century.
The factory, which had been founded in the town of Vincennes in 1740 and then reestablished in larger quarters at Sèvres in 1756, became the preeminent porcelain manufacturer in Europe in the second half of the eighteenth century. Louis XV had been an early investor in the fledgling ceramic enterprise and became its sole owner in 1759. However, due to the upheavals of the French Revolution, its financial position at the beginning of the nineteenth century was extremely precarious. No longer a royal enterprise, the factory also had lost much of its clientele, and its funding reflected the ruinous state of the French economy.
However, the appointment in 1800 of Alexandre Brongniart (1770–1847) as the administrator of the factory marked a profound shift in its fortunes. Trained as both an engineer and a scientist, Brongniart was both brilliant and immensely capable, and he brought all of his prodigious talents to the running of the troubled porcelain factory. He directed the Sèvres factory as administrator until his death in 1847, and during those five decades influenced every aspect of its organization and production. Much of the factory’s old, undecorated stock was immediately sold off, and new forms—largely in the fashionable, more severe Neoclassical style—were designed to replace out-of-date models. The composition for hard-paste porcelain was improved, and the production of soft paste, for which the factory had been famous in the previous century, was abandoned in 1804. New enamels colors were devised, and Brongniart oversaw the development of a new type of kiln that was both more efficient and cost-effective.
Much of the factory’s output during Brongniart’s first decade reflected the prevailing Empire taste, which favored extensive gilding, rich border designs, and elaborate figural scenes (56.29.1–.8). Backgrounds simulating marble or a variety of hardstones were employed with greater frequency (1987.224); the new range of enamel colors developed under Brongniart made it easier to achieve these imitation surfaces, and it is thought that his interest in mineralogy provided the impetus for this type of decoration.
For objects produced in sets, such as dinner, tea, and coffee services, and even garnitures of vases, Brongniart preferred decorative schemes that linked the objects in terms of subject matter as well as stylistically. Dinner services were given coherence by the use of an overall theme, in addition to shared border patterns and ground colors. One of the best examples of this can be found in the “Service des Départements,” which was conceived by Brongniart in 1824 (2002.57). Each of the plates in the service was decorated with a famous topographical view of the département (administrative unit) of France that it represented, and its border was painted with small cameo portraits of figures from the region, as well as symbols of the major arts, industries, and products of the area. This same type of thematic unity is found on a coffee service produced in 1836 (1986.281.1ab–4). All of the pieces of the service are decorated with scenes depicting the cultivation of cacao, from which chocolate is made, or various stages in the preparation of chocolate as a beverage. The compositions were conceived and executed by Jean Charles Develly, a painter at Sèvres who was responsible for many of the most ambitious dinner services produced at the factory during Brongniart’s tenure.
The range of objects produced in the first half of the nineteenth century was enormous, as were the types of decoration that they employed. A recent exhibition catalogue devoted to Brongniart’s years at Sèvres indicates that ninety-two new designs for vases were introduced, as were eighty-nine different cup models, and the types of objects produced by the factory included every sort of form required by a dinner or dessert service, coffee and tea wares, decorative objects such as vases, and functional objects such as water jugs, basins, and toiletry articles. A new form rarely replaced an older one; the range of production simply increased.
The same was true with types of decoration, as the factory was working in a wide variety of styles at any given time. From the earliest years of the Sèvres factory, its painters had copied not only contemporary compositions but also prints and paintings from earlier periods. However, under Brongniart, the factory sought to copy famous paintings with the specific intention of recording the “true” appearance of works increasingly perceived to be fragile. Works by a wide variety of artists were copied, but those by Raphael were especially popular. Raphael’s stature is reflected in a vase of 1834 in which a cameo-style portrait of the artist decorates the primary reserve, while on the back an artist’s palette is encircled by the names Titian, Poussin, and Rubens (1978.373).
Just as works by earlier artists were copied, so too were decorative techniques of previous centuries. The interlace patterns of so-called Saint-Porchaire ceramic ware of the sixteenth century served as the inspiration for the decoration on a cup of 1837 (2003.153). The form of the cup itself derives from Renaissance silver forms made in Italy and France. However, the palette of vibrant reds, greens, blues, and yellows contrasts markedly with the muted browns and off whites of Saint-Porchaire wares and reflects the reinterpretation of historical styles that was characteristic of so much of nineteenth-century decorative arts.
Interest in the Gothic style emerged early in Brongniart’s tenure at Sèvres and remained popular for much of the nineteenth century. Strict adherence to Gothic motifs was rarely observed, however, and the Gothic style was more evoked than faithfully copied. This tendency is reflected in a pair of vases (1992.23.1) for which the model was designated vase gothique Fragonard (named after the vase’s designer, Alexandre Evariste Fragonard [1780–1850]. The Gothic elements lie more in the painted decoration than in the form itself, and the style of the painting reflects a Renaissance technique rather than a medieval one. The palette of grays and whites on a blue ground instantly recalls the enamel-on-copper wares produced in Limoges, France, in the sixteenth century, and its use on these vases indicates the willingness to freely mix artistic styles and techniques of different periods in order to achieve new aesthetic effects.
The eclecticism and historicism that characterized so much of the production during Brongniart’s tenure continued after his death in 1847. The factory’s output reflected an ongoing desire for technical innovation as well as a wide embrace of diverse decorative styles that were employed simultaneously. A tea and coffee service of 1855–61 (69.193.1–.11) embodies the selective borrowing of forms and motifs that is found so frequently in Sèvres production of the middle decades of the nineteenth century. The shapes used for the different components of the service evoke both China and the Near East, an obvious allusion to the origins of the two beverages. The openwork decoration refers directly to Chinese ceramics made in this technique, and the decoration employs a variety of Chinese emblems. However, the palette of pink and gold, entirely European in character, serves to neutralize the Asian aspects of the service.
Perhaps the only thread that can be said to run through much Sèvres production of the nineteenth century is the proclivity to borrow freely from various historical styles and then to either reinterpret these styles or combine them in unprecedented ways. A standing cup of 1879 (1990.238a,b) draws upon silver cups of the Renaissance for its form, but in this instance the size of the porcelain cup dwarfs any of its metal prototypes. Its style of decoration derives from Limoges painted enamels of the sixteenth century, but the prominent use of gilding throughout reflects its wholly nineteenth-century character. This cup was presented by the French government to one of the first-prize winners at the 1878 Exposition Universelle.
It was with the advent of the Art Nouveau style at the very end of the nineteenth century that historicism lost its grip at Sèvres, and indeed throughout the decorative arts, and forms inspired by nature and often characterized by asymmetry become dominant. This reliance upon natural forms is fully evident in a coffee service of 1900–1904 (1988.287.1a,b). The designer, Léon Kann...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Porcelain, Oil
Ruth
Located in Missouri, MO
KPM Porcelain
"Ruth" c. 1900
Original hand-painted KPM Porcelain
In Original Gilded Florentine Frame
7 x 4 (16 x 9 framed)
Since 250 years, the royal sceptre brand stands for finest...
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Porcelain, Oil
Queen Louise
Located in Missouri, MO
KPM Porcelain
"Queen Louise" c. 1900
Original hand-painted KPM Porcelain
approx. 14 x 11 inches
approx. 21 x 15 inches framed
Since 250 years, the royal ...
Category
Victorian 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Porcelain, Oil
Franco-Prussian Battle Scene
Located in Missouri, MO
Wilfrid Constant Beauquesne (1847 - 1913)
"Franco-Prussian Battle Scene" c. 1900
Oil on Canvas
Signed Lower Right
Site Size: approx 22 x 28 inches
Framed Size: approx 35 x 40 inches
French artistry was deeply influenced by three wars during the 19th century and, accordingly, the artistic imagination was not lost upon the public. "Patriotism comes to the aid of battle painters," a contemporary remarked, "presenting them with a sympathetic public already fascinated by the subject." After the brief Franco-Prussian conflict of 1870, French painters were particularly anxious to retrieve national pride by presenting works which reflected their own national heroism versus enemy brutality.
Known for his scenic depictions of this war, Wilfried Beauquesne, a native of Rennes, France, was undoubtedly influenced in his selection of subjects by his instructors at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. Vernet-Lecomte and Horace Vernet were both well known military artists. Vernet had actually lived and worked during the period of Napoleonic conflicts - being awarded the Legion of Honor by the Emperor's own hand. Beauquesne exhibited regularly at the annual Paris Salon between 1887 and 1899, as well as throughout Europe.
In 1890, illustrating the fortunes of life, The Art Amateur ran the following item in its "Gossip Column:"
"A queer story comes to me from Paris. A commission agent made a bargain with a poor painter, living out at Saint-Maude, to paint military subjects for him, at two francs an hour. The agent changed the signature to that of Gaubault, and sold the pictures to various dealers. On day, by chance, the poor painter came to Paris, went to the Salon, and was astonished to see one of his pictures there. He look at the catalogue, and found the name of the artist and the address of the dealer where he was to be found, The poor artist went to the dealer and introduced himself saying, "I am Gaubault." "Most happy to make your acquaintance," replied the dealer. "Your pictures sell very well, and I have been wanting to see you for the last six years." "But my name is not Gaubault, it is Beauquesne." Explanations followed. The dishonest commission agent disappeared; and Beauquesne restored his real signature on the pictures, which had made his pseudonym almost famous...
Category
Impressionist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The Haywagon
Located in Missouri, MO
James Edwin Meadows (British 1828-1888)
"The Haywagon" 1866
Oil on Canvas
Site: 24 x 40 inches
Framed: 30 x 46 inches approx.
A London landscape painter, James Edwin Meadows was the...
Category
Land 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The Sculptor’s Studio Das Bildhauer Atelier
By Lesser Ury
Located in London, GB
LESSER URY 1861-1931
Międzychód, Poland 1861 - 1931 Berlin (German)
Title: The Sculptor’s Studio Das Bildhauer Atelier, 1883
Technique: Hand Signed and Dated Oil on Canvas
Pape...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
The Cellist
Located in Missouri, MO
Ferdinand V.L. Roybet (1840-1920)
"The Cellist" c. 1880s
Oil on Panel
Site: 20 x 14 inches
Framed Size: 28 x 14 inches
Ferdinand Roybet is considere...
Category
Realist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood Panel
A Conundrum in the Kitchen
By Frank Hyde
Located in Missouri, MO
Frank Hyde (British 1849-1937)
"A Conundrum in the Kitchen" c. 1900
Oil on Canvas
Signed Lower Left
Image: 37.5 x 57.5 inches
Framed: 44 x 64.5 inches
From the Maidstone Museum, UK:
Hyde was born in Surrey in 1849 and spent a large amount of time in London during his youth. His father had been in the army but retired to live the life of a gentleman upon inheriting the family seat, Hyde End Manor in Berkshire. Hyde, however, would later inherit and sell the Manor.
As a young man, Hyde trained as an artist at the Royal Academy, London, and his subsequent career revealed striking artistic versatility. His subjects varied from the portrayal of real, dramatic events to comic characters commissioned by the card manufacturer Raphael Tuck.
Starting out as a 1st Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers, Hyde moved on to begin his career as a war artist during the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71, producing drawings for ‘The Graphic’, an illustrated weekly publication.
Hyde married Constance Mary Louise Felgate in 1876, but she died less than a year later. While he travelled extensively throughout his life after Constance’s, death Hyde purchased a villa in Capri where he met Rosina Ferrara, whom he used as a model, and John Singer Sargent, with whom he shared a studio. Hyde is perhaps best known for his paintings of Capri...
Category
Realist 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
The Monopolist
Located in Fort Washington, PA
Framed Dimensions: 36.00" x 48.00"
Signature: Signed Lower Right
J.G Brown's "Monopolist" was listed in 1885's Spring Exhibit catalogue of M.A. It was displayed on a panel in The We...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil