Lot Essay
Paris in the late 19th century was a city redefining itself. Tree-lined boulevards, the invention of Baron Hausmann, bustled with activity - elegant Parisians dressed at the height of fashion criss-crossed the avenues in their horse drawn carriages, eager flower sellers pushed their colorful carts under the morning sunshine and notorious courtesans could be seen parading so that all of Paris might envy their fancy dress and jewels. Modern Paris provided an endless range of subjects for a new generation of artists, and Jean Béraud's entire career was spent capturing what he saw around him. He even had a carriage designed specifically for this purpose that allowed him to park along the avenues and observe his fellow Parisians. Béraud was the perfect flaneur, "a passionate spectator whom we might liken...to a mirror as vast as the crowd itself." (V. Steele, Paris Fashion - A Cultural History, New York, 1988, p. 90). Béraud's Paris and its inhabitants were always captured with the accuracy of a camera lense.
With its grand boulevards, bridges and railroads, modern Paris provided an endless range of new subjects for the multitude of artists who inhabited the capital. A favorite subject was the recently constructed bridge, Le Pont de l'Europe, one of the modern marvels of 19th century Paris. It was an impressive steel structure which could be viewed from several interesting vantage points, a feature that greatly appealed to artists such as Caillebotte and Monet, who also had painted its girdered heights in the 1870s. In addition, the bridge also allowed for two-way traffic with a very wide street, sidewalks and a broad central area. The design encouraged pedestrian traffic, and it was therefore the people, as well as the bridge that attracted so many artists. Jean Béraud most likely had seen Caillebotte's famous depiction of the bridge in the Impressionist exhibition of 1877, where the monumental steel railings viewed on a diagonal tend to dward the pedestrians promenading on the adjacent sidewalk, however it is important to note that Julia Sagraves dates the Béraud to circa 1875, before Caillebotte's painting (Gustave Caillebotte, Urban Impressionist, p. 102). As was always his focus, Béraud's primary interest was the people, who appear as actors on a stage in Le Pont de l'Europe. His bridge becomes a strong horizontal expanse set high on the horizon, thereby providing the perfect backdrop for the elegant Parisians, who appear frozen in time as in a snapshot. A couple dressed in black are out for a walk. Béraud has subtly captured the side glance of the man gazing at the nearby woman (most likely a courtesan) who is walking her dog. A young mother rushes with her little girl to cross the street while the child appears distracted by the steam that rises up from the railroad under the bridge. The pose of these two figures is reminiscent of compositions by Degas. Finally, one of the most striking features of the painting is Béraud's inclusion of the young shop boy, completely dressed in white, as he crosses the bridge with a bouquet of white flowers. The arrangement of the figures in Le Pont de l'Europe with their emphasis on disunity make this one of Beraud's most modern paintings, a work that can stand side-by-side with the most avant-garde Impressionist paintings.
This painting will be included in the forthcoming Béraud catalogue raisonne being prepared by Patrick Offenstadt with the help of the Fondation Wildenstein.
With its grand boulevards, bridges and railroads, modern Paris provided an endless range of new subjects for the multitude of artists who inhabited the capital. A favorite subject was the recently constructed bridge, Le Pont de l'Europe, one of the modern marvels of 19th century Paris. It was an impressive steel structure which could be viewed from several interesting vantage points, a feature that greatly appealed to artists such as Caillebotte and Monet, who also had painted its girdered heights in the 1870s. In addition, the bridge also allowed for two-way traffic with a very wide street, sidewalks and a broad central area. The design encouraged pedestrian traffic, and it was therefore the people, as well as the bridge that attracted so many artists. Jean Béraud most likely had seen Caillebotte's famous depiction of the bridge in the Impressionist exhibition of 1877, where the monumental steel railings viewed on a diagonal tend to dward the pedestrians promenading on the adjacent sidewalk, however it is important to note that Julia Sagraves dates the Béraud to circa 1875, before Caillebotte's painting (Gustave Caillebotte, Urban Impressionist, p. 102). As was always his focus, Béraud's primary interest was the people, who appear as actors on a stage in Le Pont de l'Europe. His bridge becomes a strong horizontal expanse set high on the horizon, thereby providing the perfect backdrop for the elegant Parisians, who appear frozen in time as in a snapshot. A couple dressed in black are out for a walk. Béraud has subtly captured the side glance of the man gazing at the nearby woman (most likely a courtesan) who is walking her dog. A young mother rushes with her little girl to cross the street while the child appears distracted by the steam that rises up from the railroad under the bridge. The pose of these two figures is reminiscent of compositions by Degas. Finally, one of the most striking features of the painting is Béraud's inclusion of the young shop boy, completely dressed in white, as he crosses the bridge with a bouquet of white flowers. The arrangement of the figures in Le Pont de l'Europe with their emphasis on disunity make this one of Beraud's most modern paintings, a work that can stand side-by-side with the most avant-garde Impressionist paintings.
This painting will be included in the forthcoming Béraud catalogue raisonne being prepared by Patrick Offenstadt with the help of the Fondation Wildenstein.