Eugène Boudin

Simonson, Paris
Sale: Galerie Charpentier, Paris, 10th-11th June 1958, lot 240
Arthur Tooth & Sons, London
Lady Baillie, Leeds Castle, Kent
The Hon. Mrs Geoffrey Russell, Leeds Castle, Kent (by descent from the above)
Thence by descent to the present owner

Georges Jean-Aubry, Eugène Boudin d'après les lettres et les documents inédits, Neuchâtel, 1968, illustrated p. 132
Robert Schmit, Eugène Boudin, 1824-1898, Paris, 1973, vol. III, no. 3130, illustrated p. 203

The panel is sound. There are a few intermittent spots of retouching to the sky and intermittent spots of older retouching running across the left side of the upper edge, to the upper left corner and to the centre of the left edge, all visible under UV light. Apart from some light frame rubbing towards the lower left corner, this work is in good condition. Colours: Overall fairly accurate, although the colours are richer in the original.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In the summer of 1895, Boudin travelled to Venice for the final time with the landscape painter Henri Harpignies and one other travelling companion. The body of work he created bears testament to the effect the light and atmosphere of Venice had on the artist; the luminosity of these paintings and the sumptuous brushwork brilliantly evoke the unique interaction between water, light and architecture that made the city so attractive to painters.

Boudin was very conscious of the rich tradition of topographical painting when he first visited Venice in 1892, having made copies of Guardi during his visits to the Louvre in the 1860s. The present work presents the view from the steps of the Salute looking across to San Giorgio, and the short lively brushstrokes of the water and atmospheric rendering of the sky creates a fresh, more impressionistic vision of the city than those of his 18th century predecessors. Peter C. Sutton wrote of Boudin's Venetian paintings: 'these sparkling images of the ancient city and its monuments usually adopt a distant point of view in the tradition of Caneletto and Guardi, but are executed with a more animated touch that enlivens the sea and sky. Boudin's paintings of Venice apparently were well received; at the posthumous sale of the contents of his atelier in 1899, a Venetian painting fetched the highest price' (P. C. Sutton, Boudin: Impressionist Marine Paintings (exhibition catalogue), Peabody Museum of Salem, 1991, p. 78).