236 - Alexis van Hamme,

Alexis van Hamme, Belgian 1818-1875- The Letter; oil on panel, signed and dated 'Al: Van Hamme. 1874.' (lower right), 56 x 45.5 cm. Provenance: Miss A.M. Corless; Her sale, Christie's, London, 6 March 1911, lot 99. Anon. sale, Christie's, London, 12 June 1996, lot 214. Private Collection, UK. Note: The present work is a characteristic example of van Hamme's interior scenes, heavily inspired by the genre paintings of 17th-century Dutch masters such as Gerard ter Borch (1617-1681) and Gerrit Dou (1613-1675). Indeed, the subject of the love letter, which was popular amongst Golden Age Dutch artists, also often recurred in van Hamme's paintings, as in his composition which sold at Beaussant Lefèvre, Paris, on 2 December 2011, lot 26 (€4,600 hammer). Other similar works by van Hamme include his 'Lady and her parrot' which sold at Phillips, London, on 28 November 2000, lot 18 (£17,000 hammer), and his 'In the kitchen' which sold at Bonhams, London, on 27 March 2007, lot 44 (£7,000 hammer). The present work is a particularly charming example of his oeuvre.