François Bonvin (1817-1887) - Lot 219

Lot n° 219
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Estimation :
3000 - 4000 EUR
François Bonvin (1817-1887) - Lot 219
François Bonvin (1817-1887) The Breton wool spinner, 1865 Oil on canvas Signed and dated '1865' upper right Bears an almost illegible exhibition stamp on the back and an inventory number "216" on the stretcher. 47 x 38 cm With frame: 59 x 50 cm From a modest background, François Bonvin, born in 1817 in the 15th arrondissement of Paris, began learning drawing at the city's municipal school. In addition to his day job, the young painter studied in the evenings at the Gobelins workshop and at the Académie Suisse. He was a frequent visitor to the Louvre, where he immersed himself in the art of the Flemish and Dutch masters. His painting gradually turned to landscapes, a field he chose as his specialty and which earned him three third-class medals at the 1849 Salon. By 1859, he was already initiating a rebellious movement, welcoming to his home artists of a new generation, such as Fantin-Latour, Legros and Ribot. For Bonvin, it is in modern pictorial naturalism that he paradoxically finds a closeness to the great old masters, unanimously celebrated throughout the centuries. In 1863, he took part in the Salon des Refusés alongside his friend Gustave Courbet. This work also reveals the influence of the Nordic style, perhaps inspired by the genre scenes of Chardin and Pieter de Hooch. From these masters of the 17th and 18th centuries, known for their simplicity of life and creation, Bonvin borrows the atmosphere of contemplation and discreet grandeur that he conveys to his subjects. He chooses an earthy color palette: a monochrome of browns enhanced by the spinner's white habit and touches of red. Oil on canvas, signed and dated '1865' upper right, 18.5 x 14.9 in
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