DOI Heft:
No. 195 (June, 1909)
DOI Artikel:Frantz, Henri: The salon of the société nationale des beaux arts, Paris
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.20967#0072
The Salon of the SocUte Nationaie, Paris
though in quite a different way. This artist is
possessed of an extremely graceful vision, and one
cannot resist the charm and elegance of these
ladies, seated in a beautiful park, who are being
diverted by a scene from an Italian comedy played
by some children. Some of the daintiness of
those old painters of fetes galantes seems to linger
in this work.
M. Jacques Blanche seemed to me to be amongst
the best represented of the exhibitors this year,
and he has seldom shown a more striking assem-
blage of works or pictures which contain more
excellent qualities than at this Salon. Though
considerably influenced by the works of English
painters—and could one choose better masters ?—
Blanche is becoming every year more himself, and
may be counted among our very foremost French
portrait painters. In his contributions to the
exhibition one finds something of all the subjects
he affects; vigorous portraits of men; a very
seductive female portrait (Mrs. Saxton Noble), the
background of which displeased me a little; a
brilliant piece of still life, and some flowers painted
as only Blanche knows how to paint them.
5°
M. Lucien Simon is also another of the Society’s
strong personalities—a fact which I have no pre-
tensions to teach anyone,—but what is worth while
to note about M. Simon is that he always remains
himself, the charming colourist that we well appre-
ciate. After the magnificence of the Cathedrale
d’Assise, his picture of last year, he has returned to
his beloved Brittany. This corner of the dining-
room is already familiar to us, with its big bay
windows opening upon the tranquil horizon of a
fair calm autumn sea. It is the painter’s own
house at Benodet, which we have already seen as
the setting for portraits of his family, and among
them Dauchez, M. Blanche’s brother-in-law. In
La Collation also the children gathered around
the table are members of his family. It is a most
remarkable work of very powerful execution, as
also is the portrait of the painter by himself.
M. Gaston La Touche is also one of the best
known and the most successful of the adherents of
the Nationaie. After the very considerable effort
of his exhibition last year his energy has by no
means flagged, as his large panel, Theatre de
Verdure, amply attests ; as also do La Marchande
though in quite a different way. This artist is
possessed of an extremely graceful vision, and one
cannot resist the charm and elegance of these
ladies, seated in a beautiful park, who are being
diverted by a scene from an Italian comedy played
by some children. Some of the daintiness of
those old painters of fetes galantes seems to linger
in this work.
M. Jacques Blanche seemed to me to be amongst
the best represented of the exhibitors this year,
and he has seldom shown a more striking assem-
blage of works or pictures which contain more
excellent qualities than at this Salon. Though
considerably influenced by the works of English
painters—and could one choose better masters ?—
Blanche is becoming every year more himself, and
may be counted among our very foremost French
portrait painters. In his contributions to the
exhibition one finds something of all the subjects
he affects; vigorous portraits of men; a very
seductive female portrait (Mrs. Saxton Noble), the
background of which displeased me a little; a
brilliant piece of still life, and some flowers painted
as only Blanche knows how to paint them.
5°
M. Lucien Simon is also another of the Society’s
strong personalities—a fact which I have no pre-
tensions to teach anyone,—but what is worth while
to note about M. Simon is that he always remains
himself, the charming colourist that we well appre-
ciate. After the magnificence of the Cathedrale
d’Assise, his picture of last year, he has returned to
his beloved Brittany. This corner of the dining-
room is already familiar to us, with its big bay
windows opening upon the tranquil horizon of a
fair calm autumn sea. It is the painter’s own
house at Benodet, which we have already seen as
the setting for portraits of his family, and among
them Dauchez, M. Blanche’s brother-in-law. In
La Collation also the children gathered around
the table are members of his family. It is a most
remarkable work of very powerful execution, as
also is the portrait of the painter by himself.
M. Gaston La Touche is also one of the best
known and the most successful of the adherents of
the Nationaie. After the very considerable effort
of his exhibition last year his energy has by no
means flagged, as his large panel, Theatre de
Verdure, amply attests ; as also do La Marchande