Paul Signac (1863-1935)
PROPERTY FROM THE ESTATE OF MR. AND MRS. FRANÇOIS SCHWARZ
Paul Signac (1863-1935)

Moulin d'Edam

Details
Paul Signac (1863-1935)
Moulin d'Edam
signed and dated 'P. Signac 96' (lower left)
oil on canvas
25¾ x 32 in. (65.4 x 81.3 cm.)
Painted in 1896
Provenance
M. Lagarde, Paris (acquired from the artist, 17 April 1897).
Anon. sale, Drouot, Paris, 27 March 1931, lot 94.
Gaston Lévy, Paris; sale, Paris, 17 November 1932, lot 108.
Galerie Moos, Geneva (sold, 8 May 1948).
A. Wormser, Paris.
J. Dreyfus (1950).
M. Knoedler & Co., Inc., New York (1950).
Hugues Le Gallet, New York (1951).
Anon. sale, Sotheby Parke Bernet Inc., New York, 19 March 1958, lot 61.
Acquired at the above sale by the late owners.
Literature
J. Focarino, ed., F. Daulte, intro., Privately Owned: Paintings and Drawings from the Collection of François L. Schwarz, New York, 1974, p. 62 (illustrated in color, p. 63).
F. Cachin, Signac, catalogue raisonné de l'Oeuvre peint, Paris, 2000, p. 226, no. 294 (illustrated).

Lot Essay

Signac adopted the Neo-Impressionist pointillist painting style in 1886 and henceforth became one of its most ardent exponents. Following the death of Georges Seurat in 1891, Signac had taken on the responsibility for the development of the Neo-Impressionist school, actively participating in the exhibitions of the Société des Artistes Indépendants, as well as international venues. He made regular expeditions to the country-side--Collioure or Portrieux to name a few-- bringing back series of canvases painted in situ. He developed his works in watercolor in 1892 and began instead to use these studies as a basis for his larger compositions in oil. Furthermore, the painstakingly applied dots of color became ampler in scale as the colors became stronger and the use of contrasts became less systematic.
In 1896 Signac travelled through Holland with his friend and fellow artist Théo van Rysselberghe, visiting Flessingues, Volendam and Edam. During this journey he painted one view at Edam, focussing on the most typical Dutch motif, the windmill. The five other works from this journey focus on harbor views (Cachin 292-297). A highly-skilled and masterful technician, each section of the canvas shows his inventiveness without compromising the legibility of the entire composition. In 1898, Signac returned to this subject matter and again painted a similiar view to that of the present work, however in a more somber palette (Cachin 317).

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