Hugues Merle

The Little Shop at Macy's, New York
Private Collection, New York (acquired from the above in 1931)
Thence by descent to the present owners

The following condition report was kindly provided by Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. The painting has been recently cleaned and looks very well. The canvas has an old lining. There is a vertical stretch mark crack to the right of the head which is slightly visible and a wave in the canvas in the upper left which is in need of attention. There appear to be few retouches to most of the picture. In the hair beneath the veil there are a group of restorations on either side of the head in the hair. In the face itself, the right eyeball has been retouched and there are a few dots of retouching around the figure's chin and neck. Elsewhere however, there do not seem to be any restorations of any note. Generally the picture is in very good state and could be hung as is.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

In his Art Treasures of America, Edward Strahan recorded the inventories of the very best collections of America's most elite art collectors.  In its index, some artists' entries are a few lines long, while a select group has several inches of text demonstrating their high demand. Unsurprisingly, William Bouguereau's works are referenced in nearly every important American collection, yet closely matched are those paintings by Hughes Merle. Bouguereau's predecessor, and indeed an inspiration for the younger artist to move from historical subjects to the genre scenes that made him famous, Merle enjoyed a reputation that was equally notable in the mid- to late nineteenth century.  A master of academic painting, Merle built his compositions such as the present work with clear and careful lines and delicate glazes to create subtle shifts of color in the Italian peasant's costume, skin tone, and staring eyes.  Beyond displays of technical skill, Merle's fine technique often revealed a deep psychology in his subjects, his figures often poised in dramatic, tense moments, or contemplative moods, which had a powerful hold over viewers.  Indeed, so compelled was Strahan by Merle's work he imagined that Bouguereau would have been quite happy of hearing of the elder's artist death in 1881--leaving him with one less formidable competitor.