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Lot Essay
Paris in the late 19th Century was a city in the midst of change. The newly created tree-lined boulevards, the brain-child of Baron Hausmann, bustled with the daily activities of a myriad of fashionable urbanites, providing an endless supply of subject matter for a new generation of artists. Jean Braud dedicated himself to the observation and depiction of the social activities of the capital and even had a carriage specially designed so that he could park on the side of the street and study his fellow Parisians.
As was always his primary focus, it is the people who provide the centre of interest in Champs Elyses, Carre Marigny, appearing as characters on an impromptu stage. Braud's studied glimpses of a momentary reality betray his interest in the increasingly popular medium of photography, capturing what Baudelaire referred to as "the heroism of modern life" in his depictions of late 19th Century Paris.
Patrick Offenstadt, with the aid of the Wildenstein Institute, will include this painting in his forthcoming Braud catalogue raisonn.
As was always his primary focus, it is the people who provide the centre of interest in Champs Elyses, Carre Marigny, appearing as characters on an impromptu stage. Braud's studied glimpses of a momentary reality betray his interest in the increasingly popular medium of photography, capturing what Baudelaire referred to as "the heroism of modern life" in his depictions of late 19th Century Paris.
Patrick Offenstadt, with the aid of the Wildenstein Institute, will include this painting in his forthcoming Braud catalogue raisonn.