ALFRED SISLEY | Les lilas dans mon jardin

Jean-Baptiste Faure, Paris (acquired by 1897) Galerie Bernheim-Jeune, Paris

Dr Fritz Nathan, Zurich (acquired by 1953)

By descent from the above to the present owner

Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, Alfred Sisley, 1897, no. 73 (titled Les lilas dans mon jardin, à Moret) Tübingen, Kunsthalle, Die Kunst des Handelns. Meisterwerke des 14. bis 20. Jahrhunderts bei Fritz und Peter Nathan, 2005-06, no. 149, illustrated in colour in the catalogue

Notice sur la Collection J.-B. Faure, Paris, 1902, no. 112, catalogued p. 55 (titled Les lilas) René Huyghe, ‘Histoire de l'art contemporain: La Peinture’, in L'amour de l'Art, January 1933, fig. 3, illustrated p. 6 (titled Les lilas dans mon jardin, à Moret)

François Daulte, Alfred Sisley. Catalogue raisonné de l'œuvre peint, Lausanne, 1959, no. 807, illustrated

Painted on a bright summer day, Les lilas dans mon jardin is a depiction of the lush lilac trees in Sisley’s garden, beautifully rendered by the artist's staccato brushstrokes. Sisley first moved with his family to Veneux-Nadon near Moret-sur-Loing in 1880, and continued to live in that area for the rest of his life, moving several times between the two villages. The local scenery offered a constant source of inspiration to the artist, who tried to capture the changing effects of light on his surroundings. In the present work, Sisley clearly took joy in depicting the splendour of nature, using quick, lively brush-strokes for the rich vegetation and cool blue, mauve and white tones to render the facades in the blazing midday sun. Executed with such lightness that they appear to be moving in the slight breeze, the lilacs that dominate the composition give it a sense of frontality, contrasted against the dense buildings surrounding them.  

Like Monet, Sisley continued to explore and develop the Impressionist style in the 1880s and 1890s and during this time his brushwork became more vigorous and the colouration more varied. In the 1880s, while his fellow Impressionists were already widening their subject matter and concentrating more on the human figure, Sisley continued to focus on the effects of light, seeking to capture the surroundings at different times of the day and during different seasons. At the same time influenced by the advancing Neo-Impressionist theories and technique, Sisley used quick brushstrokes and a vibrant palette to create strong, lively colour contrasts. Like many of his works, Les lilas dans mon jardin evokes an atmosphere of calm and serenity, and the only suggestion of human activity is provided by the small figure in the lower right corner, which further emphasises a sense of tranquillity and harmony of man and nature.



This work will be included in the new edition of the Catalogue Raisonné of Alfred Sisley by François Daulte being prepared at the Galerie Brame & Lorenceau by the Comité Sisley.