ANTON MAUVE

Zaandam, 1838 - Arnhem, 1888 Landscape with peasant woman and animals at rest Signed A Mauve f. lower right Oil on canvas, 80X124 cm Provenance: Milan, private collection Mauve was a Dutch painter belonging to the current known as the 'Gray School' and one of the most prominent exponents of the Hague School, the Dutch counterpart of the Barbizon school of painters in France. He spent his youth in Haarlem, where he was a pupil of animal painter Pieter Frederik van Os (1808-1892) from about 1854 to 1857; he also studied with painters Wouterus Verschuur and Paul Gabriël. He settled in Amsterdam in 1865 and moved to The Hague in 1871. A master of color, his famous cousin Vincent van Gogh had a significant influence on him; the two studied together in the years 1881-82, and the master called him a great interpreter of the beautiful, gray Dutch countryside. In his canvases, done en plein air, he was able to capture extraordinary light effects in silver tones; the subjects refer to rural life where there is a strong bond between man and nature. During his later period, his paintings were deeply influenced by the work of Jean François Millet. Reference bibliography: S. De Bodt, M. Plomp, Anton Mauve 1838-1888, Uitgeverij Thoth 2009, ad vocem