Balinese girls preparing offerings in the garden

Comparing to his oil on canvas compositions, the drawing of the impressionist artist Adrien-Jean Le Mayeur de Merprès is a witty and spontaneous record of the luxuriant tropics. Constrained by the medium of charcoal and at times pastel on paper, the paper works do not afford the same brilliance of colours which the artist is much noted for in his oil on canvas compositions. Nevertheless, the meticulous draughtsmanship enhanced by the academic training of the artist is more evident with the simple and yet fundamental style.

The present lot depicts the preparing of offerings by a few Balinese girls in a garden-terrace that offers a view of a seascape in the background. The twirling tree-branches adorning the upper left corner suggests a lyrical movement in the work, with limited colours but deft and strong drawings, Le Mayeur manages to capture the religiosity mood mingled with a tinge of elegance and theatricality.