FÉLIX-JOSEPH BARRIAS | Two designs for the decoration of the Hôtel du Louvre, ParisA) Autumn: The HarvestB) Autumn: The Hunt

Both laid down on faded blue paper which has subsequently been hinged to a modern mount. There is some minor discolouration to the paper, but both works remain in otherwise good condition, with the medium fresh and vibrant throughout. Sold unframed.
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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."

Barrias' was commissioned in 1855 to execute a number of painted decorations for the newly built Grand Hôtel du Louvre in Paris, prior to the building's opening in the same year. Though the project does not survive, a group of five drawings, executed in exactly the same technique and format as the two works that make up the present lot, are today housed in the collection of the Musée du Louvre, Paris.¹ Collectively these seven drawings seem likely to have formed part of a decoration depicting the four seasons, a theme that Barrias is known to have explored during this project. ^1. Paris, Musée du Louvre, inv. nos. RF 15047-15051