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Emile BERNARD (1868-1941) Portrait of Mademoiselle Antoinette C. Oil on canvas, signed and dated 1892 lower left 76 x 55 cm With certificate dated May 2, 2024 from Madame Béatrice Recchi Altariba (granddaughter of the artist) Provenance : - Former Eugène BOCH collection, younger brother of Anna BOCH, woman painter and major collector, to whom the Musée de Pont-Aven has just dedicated an exhibition "Anna Boch. An Impressionist Journey" from February 3 to May 26, 2024. - Private collection, Brittany In 1892, Emile Bernard was barely 24 years old, yet his career was already rich in encounters that had a decisive impact on the history of art. Not only was he close to Vincent van Gogh, but he also made a decisive contribution, alongside Paul Gauguin, to the birth of synthesism in Pont-Aven in 1888. His pictorial audacity is no less fascinating than his foresight in choosing the artists and patrons he rubbed shoulders with or admired. In the early 1890s, the young painter's activity was intense, and his creativity was spotted by great connoisseurs such as the Comte de la Rochefoucauld and, of course, Anna and Eugène Boch, both from a famous Belgian industrial dynasty. This portrait comes from just such a collection, and demonstrates the importance that enlightened art circles reserved for Emile Bernard's recent creations. On several occasions, the young painter had distinguished himself by the quality of his portraits, the one of his sister Madeleine (Musée d'Orsay) remaining a model of the genre. Keen to continue in this vein in 1892, Emile Bernard clearly affirmed his admiration for Paul Cézanne's portraits. Eluding anecdote, he imposes a distant, slightly sulky attitude on the model, accentuating the magnetism of his presence. The monochromatic blue-green background of the door is awakened by the piece of compote probably lying on a tablecloth. This nod to Paul Cézanne's famous still lifes reinforces the artistic complicity between the two painters. Bernard's precocious intelligence long ago grasped the major role that the painter from Aix was to play in the rise of Modern Art. Created at a pivotal moment in Emile Bernard's career, this portrait goes beyond the simplifying formulas of synthesism to meet another essential reference point in the history of painting, that of an art that aims to transcend ephemeral fashions. Preserved in the Palmer Museum of Art at Pennsylvania State University, a less accomplished version of this portrait retains the memory of the sitter, since the canvas in this museum is known as Mademoiselle Antoinette C. Signed and dated, the portrait offered in this sale is the perfect, definitive version, immediately spotted by the great collector Eugène Boch.

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Emile BERNARD (1868-1941) Portrait of Mademoiselle Antoinette C. Oil on canvas, signed and dated 1892 lower left 76 x 55 cm With certificate dated May 2, 2024 from Madame Béatrice Recchi Altariba (granddaughter of the artist) Provenance : - Former Eugène BOCH collection, younger brother of Anna BOCH, woman painter and major collector, to whom the Musée de Pont-Aven has just dedicated an exhibition "Anna Boch. An Impressionist Journey" from February 3 to May 26, 2024. - Private collection, Brittany In 1892, Emile Bernard was barely 24 years old, yet his career was already rich in encounters that had a decisive impact on the history of art. Not only was he close to Vincent van Gogh, but he also made a decisive contribution, alongside Paul Gauguin, to the birth of synthesism in Pont-Aven in 1888. His pictorial audacity is no less fascinating than his foresight in choosing the artists and patrons he rubbed shoulders with or admired. In the early 1890s, the young painter's activity was intense, and his creativity was spotted by great connoisseurs such as the Comte de la Rochefoucauld and, of course, Anna and Eugène Boch, both from a famous Belgian industrial dynasty. This portrait comes from just such a collection, and demonstrates the importance that enlightened art circles reserved for Emile Bernard's recent creations. On several occasions, the young painter had distinguished himself by the quality of his portraits, the one of his sister Madeleine (Musée d'Orsay) remaining a model of the genre. Keen to continue in this vein in 1892, Emile Bernard clearly affirmed his admiration for Paul Cézanne's portraits. Eluding anecdote, he imposes a distant, slightly sulky attitude on the model, accentuating the magnetism of his presence. The monochromatic blue-green background of the door is awakened by the piece of compote probably lying on a tablecloth. This nod to Paul Cézanne's famous still lifes reinforces the artistic complicity between the two painters. Bernard's precocious intelligence long ago grasped the major role that the painter from Aix was to play in the rise of Modern Art. Created at a pivotal moment in Emile Bernard's career, this portrait goes beyond the simplifying formulas of synthesism to meet another essential reference point in the history of painting, that of an art that aims to transcend ephemeral fashions. Preserved in the Palmer Museum of Art at Pennsylvania State University, a less accomplished version of this portrait retains the memory of the sitter, since the canvas in this museum is known as Mademoiselle Antoinette C. Signed and dated, the portrait offered in this sale is the perfect, definitive version, immediately spotted by the great collector Eugène Boch.

Estimate 15 000 - 20 000 EUR

* Not including buyer’s premium.
Please read the conditions of sale for more information.

Sale fees: 25 %
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For sale on Saturday 20 Jul : 14:00 (CEST)
brest, France
Thierry - Lannon & Associés
+33298447844
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