ALFRED STEVENS (1823-1906) An interior with a woman by a cra...

Hammer

£600

ALFRED STEVENS (1823-1906) An interior with a woman by a cradle

signed to the left of the cradle, oil on canvas, 102cm x 76cm

Provenance: Private Collection, London.

Note: Stevens studied at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels before travelling to Paris in 1843, where he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts and developed a friendship with fellow Belgian artist Florent Willems (1823-1905). Both artists were heavily influenced by the interior scenes of 17th century  Dutch masters, such as Gerard ter Borch (1617-1681) and Gabriel Metsu (1629-1667), with Stevens and Willems both, like their predecessors, depicting elegant women in luxurious interiors, works which are redolent with a contemplative air. The subject of the maternal figure is one which appears throughout Stevens' work, as, for example, in the painting entitled 'Une Mère' (c.1870), held at the Worcester Art Museum [1913.1], which depicts a mother and her young child sleeping peacefully in a richly decorated bed. The painting 'La Jeune Mère', held at the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington D.C. [HC.P.1926.06.(O)], is likely a preparatory study for 'Une Mère', and exhibits the same loose, sketchy brushwork that characterises the present work. Indeed, Stevens treated the subject of mother and child in a number of compositions, including also in his 'Tous les bonheurs' (1861), at the Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts in Belgium [no.3645], which also utilises the imagery of the mother by a crib, and his 'Mother and Child' (c.1875-80) held at the Clark Art Institute in Williamsburg [1955.862].The auburn-haired figure of the present work is typical of Stevens' models, with many of his subjects bearing a strong resemblance to her. These include Sarah Bernhardt, whom Stevens depicted on multiple occasions, both in portraits but also in interior scenes, as in 'Love's Messenger' (c.1885), currently held in a Private Collection. Indeed, models with strikingly similar features can be found throughout Stevens' work, including notably, in his 'In the Studio' of 1888 [Metropolitan Museum, New York, no.1986.339.2], and in his much earlier painting 'L'atelier' of 1869 [Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Belgium, no.3423], with the model's face here depicted in sharp profile, similar to the present work. In this canvas, Stevens skilfully contrasts loose brushstrokes, which effectively impart a sense of movement to the work, with a close consideration of the surfaces and textures, as in the shiny satin bow on the crib, the glimmering silverware on the table behind, and even the light which reflects off the sitter's fingernails, all of which demonstrate an attention to detail for which Stevens was renowned, and which led one critic to label him the 'Ter Borch of France'.

Framed dimensions: 120cm x 96cm