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拍品专文
In 1872, Lhermitte was invited to exhibit his work, mainly his charcoal drawings, by Durand-Ruel and as soon as 1874, he began exhibiting his oil compositions at the Paris Salon. His first greatest success came with his 1882 painting titled La Paye des Moissoneurs, which enabled him to receive further important commissions. Lhermitte, largely influenced by Jules Breton and Gustave Courbet, gradually assumed the mantle of Bastien-Lepage and following the artist's death in 1884, Lhermitte began to specialize in scenes of rural life. In Lhermitte's work, the landscapes are filled with light, color and atmosphere and the peasants working the fields are idealized for their labor and dignity. Ignoring the Industrial Revolution and fixating on the image of a society prior to its emergence, Lhermitte's peasants are a visualization of paradise lost for the citizens of large cities.
Pastel, a popular medium amongst the Impressionist painters, has a more vibrant quality when compared to oil or watercolor allowing the artist to experiment in a wider range. In 1885, it was Lhermitte's close friend J.C. Cazin who convinced him to exhibit his pastels, one of his most favored mediums, at the Salon of the Société des Pastellistes of 1886. From early on, Lhermitte utilized two distinct styles of execution in his pastel works: the first was a more free and loose execution like an étude, and the second was a more precise execution such as the present work. In both styles, Lhermitte looked at Edgar Degas' trials with the medium yet never allowed himself as much experimentation as the Impressionist master. Lhermitte utilized the medium in order to communicate light, clarity, space and atmosphere, which is essentially why his works are devoid of a sense of depression or melancholy.
The present work dates to the first year that Lhermitte took on this medium and he was largely influenced by his contemporary Degas. During this period, Lhermitte experimented vigorously with this medium and therefore Maternité exhibits important characteristics as well as qualities characteristic of these early years. The vibrant whit highlights of the man and woman's shirt juxtaposed with the lively dark shadows painted with a fresh sense of movement are enveloped brilliantly by large haystacks and a bright, sun-lit blue sky. Both the haystacks and the sky have a tremendous amount of movement in them, suggesting a large mass as well as great weightlessness.
Pastel, a popular medium amongst the Impressionist painters, has a more vibrant quality when compared to oil or watercolor allowing the artist to experiment in a wider range. In 1885, it was Lhermitte's close friend J.C. Cazin who convinced him to exhibit his pastels, one of his most favored mediums, at the Salon of the Société des Pastellistes of 1886. From early on, Lhermitte utilized two distinct styles of execution in his pastel works: the first was a more free and loose execution like an étude, and the second was a more precise execution such as the present work. In both styles, Lhermitte looked at Edgar Degas' trials with the medium yet never allowed himself as much experimentation as the Impressionist master. Lhermitte utilized the medium in order to communicate light, clarity, space and atmosphere, which is essentially why his works are devoid of a sense of depression or melancholy.
The present work dates to the first year that Lhermitte took on this medium and he was largely influenced by his contemporary Degas. During this period, Lhermitte experimented vigorously with this medium and therefore Maternité exhibits important characteristics as well as qualities characteristic of these early years. The vibrant whit highlights of the man and woman's shirt juxtaposed with the lively dark shadows painted with a fresh sense of movement are enveloped brilliantly by large haystacks and a bright, sun-lit blue sky. Both the haystacks and the sky have a tremendous amount of movement in them, suggesting a large mass as well as great weightlessness.