ÉTIENNE ALLEGRAIN | A landscape with figures resting by the water, a town with classical architecture beyond

oil on canvas

The canvas appears to be lined. A decorative image reads well, though some of the details on the brown hues are a little sunken. Thin craquelure throughout. Inspection under UV shows some scattered spots of thin inpainting throughout the green leaves and ground. Further spots of retouches are on the water and mountain as well. A spot, possibly to address an old repair, appears on the leaves at center right, next to the dark architecture structure. Some spots of retouches scattered here and there on the background, like on the cloud at left by the tree. Offered in a giltwood frame enclosed within a wooden frame with a velvet liner.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot provided by Sotheby's. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colours and shades which are different to the lot's actual colour and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation because Sotheby's is not a professional conservator or restorer but rather the condition report is a statement of opinion genuinely held by Sotheby's. For that reason, Sotheby's condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot.

Etienne Allegrain, a Parisian painter, joined the Académie Royal in 1677. His imaginary panoramic landscape paintings, most of which were painted between 1690-95, appear to be inspired by Poisson's mythological landscapes. The present lot shows the lucid symmetry Allegrain created in his painting, as the undulated path draws the viewer in, past the idyllic body of water and classical architecture, until reaching the summit of the untamed wilderness in the background.