Jean-Joseph-Xavier Bidauld

Jules Burat (1807-1885), Paris;
His (deceased) sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, 28-29 April 1885, lot 10;¹
Private Collection, France;
With Artemis Fine Arts, Ltd., New York;
From whom acquired by the present owner.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting has not been removed from its original stretcher. The paint layer is clean and varnished. There is a small retouch in the upper center and another on the right edge of the cliff. Apart from these and a spot in the lower left, there do not appear to be any losses or restorations, and the condition is clearly extremely good.
"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."

Painted while Bidauld was in Italy, View of the Ravine at San Cosimato was once a part of the well-known collection of Jules Burat (1807-1885).  An amateur, Monsieur Burat amassed a collection that spanned three centuries of French art.  He owned works by Simon Vouet; had particularly strong holdings of the French 18th century, and even owned works by David and Gros.  By focusing his interests on artists who had fallen from contemporary critical favor, Burat was able to put together a group that included the works of Le Moyne, Lancret, Pater, Nattier and Chardin, among others.  A philanthropist, Burat often loaned works to local charity shows and other organizations and was thus a well-known figure in the Parisan art world of the mid-nineteenth century.²  The present work was one of four Bidaulds that Burat owned at the time of his death. 

The crisp, clear light and idyllic, unpopulated hillsides of the present canvas are indicative of Bidauld's oeuvre.  The artist continued to paint scenes of the Italian countryside throughout his career, even after his return to France, using his numerous and exhaustive preparatory sketches -- done en plein air -- as guides for later compositions.   


1.  An annotated copy of the sale catalogue at the Frick Collection in New York, lists the purchaser as "Rubin" and quotes a hammer price of 130 FF.
2.  For more information on Jules Burat and his collection, see Paul Mantz's introduction to the 1885 sales catalogue.