JEAN-BAPTISTE-CAMILLE COROT | Fontainebleau— Pavé de Chailly

The artist's studio (until 1873) 
Sale: Sotheby's, New York, May 23, 1996, lot 41, illustrated 
W.M. Brady & Co., Inc., New York 
Sale: Sotheby's, New York, November 3, 1999, lot 28, illustrated 
Acquired at the above sale 

Alfred Robaut, L'oeuvre de Corot, catalogue raisonné et illustré, Paris, 1965, vol. II, p. 8, no. 8, illustrated p. 9 
Vincent Pomarède, "The Making of an Artist," Corot, exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1996, pp. 13 (under footnote 42), 15 (under footnote 61) 

The following condition report was kindly provided by Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc.: This work is in beautiful condition. It is painted on paper that has been lightly lined onto linen and stretched onto a stretcher. The paint layer is clean and very lightly varnished. It shows a few tiny spots of retouching in the sky. This is a very immediate plein air sketch, and the artist's loose brushwork remains in excellent condition.
"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."

The present lot is one of Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot's earliest recorded works, probably painted in 1822 during a visit to the forest of Fontainebleau, which he would regularly visit. That same year Corot had entered the studio of Achille-Etna Michallon (1796-1822), considered one of the greatest landscape painters at the time, who encouraged Corot to paint in the bucolic forest southeast of Paris. During this period Corot completed studies of farmyards, trees and rocks while directly imitating Michallon's style (Pomarède, p. 13). At the same time, the bold perspective of a felled tree and expressive brushwork foretell the artist's individual and influential technique.

We would like to thank Martin Dieterle and Claire Lebeau for kindly confirming the authenticity of this lot.