La table

By the turn of the century Henri Le Sidaner found himself increasingly dissatisfied with life in Paris and he was determined to find a rural setting where, like Claude Monet, he could design his own gardens and residence. At the suggestion of Auguste Rodin he visited the historic fortress town of Gerberoy in 1901, where he purchased property in 1904. In 1910, the same year La table was painted, he began a large-scale renovation of the buildings and grounds on his land. The final design consisted of a main house, which is seen in the present painting, and a number of outbuildings: a pavilion, studio barn, tower with cupola, and several terraced gardens. During the summer months when he was in residence, Le Sidaner painted numerous views of his surroundings, as well as still-life subjects.

Le Sidaner preferred to depict the hours following midday which he appreciated for their subtle interplay of light and shadow. The cool tones that comprise the palette of La table permeate the scene with a sense of serenity. As Jacques Bashet noted in 1924: "The oils bind and melt together in the highly delicate harmonies...contours seem to emerge from the interplay of light, and in this respect, [Le Sidaner] is similar to Claude Monet" (quoted in Y. Farinaux-Le Sidaner, op.cit., p. 37). Working in a highly refined divisionist manner, Le Sidaner developed his compositions in his studio after making careful study of his subject from nature. While his paintings convey an impression of spontaneity, closer scrutiny reveals their careful construction. Le Sidaner was known to conceal or rearrange features such as architectural elements and garden bushes to enhance the overall effect of the painting. This is evident in the present painting in which the objects on the table appear to have been chosen for their myriad reflective possibilities. La table was one of sixteen works that Le Sidaner sent for a one-man exhibition at Galerie Georges Petit in 1911.