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Volume 1, Issue 8, October 2009
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Dear Friends,
We are pleased to present Henri Le Sidaner's Trafalgar Square, London. This remarkable painting is one of ten recorded works the
artist completed on his only journey to England in 1908. The painting last sold at auction in 1987 and has been in a private collection since that
time. It is in excellent condition and is presented in a fine period frame.
In Trafalgar Square,
as in all of his best works, Le Sidaner evokes a mood rather than simply painting a scene. This picture transcends
its world famous locale and carries the viewer into the artist's dream of the place, eschewing
the real world for one of light, color and reverie. Though influenced by Symbolism, Impressionism
and Pointillism, his unique amalgam of these styles, once seen, cannot be
mistaken for any other painter.
Unlike quality paintings by Le Sidaner, prices for Impressionist oils by Monet, Renoir,
Pissarro, Seurat and Sisley are now firmly entrenched in the seven figure
range and above. Yes, it is still possible to buy one for less, but not
without compromising on quality, condition and subject matter to some degree. The very best of their work, for all but a
handful of collectors, is now out of reach. For admirers of period French Impressionist and Post-Impressionist
paintings, museum caliber works such as Trafalgar
Square still offer real value by comparison.
Price upon request.
Sincerely,
Joyce and Kevin Anderson
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HENRI LE SIDANER
French, 1862-1939
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Trafalgar Square, London, 1908
Oil on canvas
31 x 39 1/2 inches
Signed lower left: Le Sidaner
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Literature:
Camille Mauclair, Henri Le Sidaner (1928), p. 56 // Yann Farineaux-Le Sidaner, Le Sidaner: L'oeuvre peint et gravé (1989), p. 114 no. 234 illus.
Exhibited:
Goupil Galleries, London, 1908, Hampton Court and London, by H. Le Sidaner // Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1908, no. 730 // Société du Jeu de Paume, Paris, 1916, Triennale, no. 3 // Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1922, International Exhibition of Paintings, no. 194
Provenance:
[Gallerie Georges Petit, Paris]; [M. Knoedler & Co., New York];
Mrs. Sterner, New York; William Wrigley, Chicago; to Art Institute of
Chicago; to sale, Christie's, New York, November 11, 1987, no. 221; to
private collection, until the present
Historians have frequently described Le
Sidaner's work in terms of musicality and silence. Always in a 'minor
key,' its harmonies are seen to evoke a wistful mood that is
intensified by the absence of figures: "His oeuvre displays a taste for
tender, soft and silent atmospheres. Gradually, he went so far as to
eliminate all human presence from his pictures, as if he feared that
the slightest human form might disturb their muffled silence" (Y.
Farinaux- Le Sidaner, op cit., p. 31).
 In the present work, Le
Sidaner drew inspiration from the architectural environments and
accoutrements man creates for himself: "The silent harmony of things is
enough to evoke the presence of those who live among them. Indeed,
such presences are felt throughout his works. Deserted they may be,
but never empty" (C. Mauclair, Henri Le Sidaner, Paris, 1928, p. 12).
Born on the island of Mauritius,
Le Sidaner studied with academic painter Alexandre Cabanel at the Ecole
des Beaux-Arts, but his zeal for the innovations of Impressionism led
him to reject the conventions of his training in favor of the
avant-garde movements of fin-de-siècle France.
Early in his career, he was linked with both the Pre-Raphaelites and
the Symbolists. Although he began his public career at the
conservative Salon des Artistes Français, where he was recognized with
a third-class medal and travel grant in 1891, he later exhibited at the
Salon of the Société Nationale, a Société directed by Puvis de
Chavannes after 1892 and known for it's acceptance of modern
tendencies. He enjoyed continued favor and was regularly honored by
solo shows not only in Paris, but also in London, Brussels, and the United States.
By 1930, Le Sidaner, already an officer of the Legion of Honor, was
elected a member of the Institut, gaining a position at the Académie
des Beaux-Arts. He was named its president in 1937.
Museum Collections:
Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C.;
Detroit Intsitute of the Arts, MI; Musee d'Art Modern, Paris; Museum of
Modern Art, Rome; Nelson Atkins Museum, Kansas City; Ashmolean Museum,
Oxford; Phoenix Art Museum, AZ; Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; The
Tate Collection, England
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