Constant Troyon (1810-1865) - Peasant woman and her child

Oil on canvas mounted on cardboard
Dimensions: H. 32 x W. 24 cm (with frame: H. 46 x W. 38 cm)
Original Regency-style wood and gilded stucco frame.

Born in 1810, Constant Troyon received a neoclassical education. He presented his first works at the Salon of 1833. He quickly developed an interest in realistic landscape painting, with numerous studies in the woods of Meudon, Compiègne and Saint-Cloud.

After meeting Jules Dupré, Constant Troyon was irrevocably drawn to naturalism. Alongside Théodore Rousseau, Camille Corot and Narcisse Diaz de la Peña, he took part in the plein-air painting of the Fontainebleau forest, becoming one of the painters behind the Barbizon School. While remaining faithful to his friends, he nevertheless turned his attention to animal painting, which met with great success.

In 1846, he discovered 17th-century Dutch landscape painters such as Paulus Potter and Albert Cuyp. Troyon made domestic animals the main subject of his paintings. His talent as a realist painter was rewarded after the Salon of 1849, when he was named Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur. Considered one of the greatest painters of his time, he had Eugène Boudin work in his studio. Troyon died at the age of 55, leaving behind a substantial body of work. He is one of the most represented 19th-century artists in museums. In 1867, the Institut de France created the Prix Constant Troyon, awarded annually to a painter under the age of thirty. Since 1875, the rue Troyon in Paris's 17th arrondissement has paid tribute to him.

Our painting: This lovely, perfectly composed subject reflects Troyon's love of simple rural scenes. The pictorial material is thick, with superimposed brushstrokes and skilful transparencies. Certainly produced before 1840, this work helps us understand how these naturalist painters, by breaking with neoclassicism, paved the way for modernity and Impressionism. The work is in relatively good condition, with some depigmentation of the foliage and very minor restorations. It is presented in an original Regency-style frame in wood and gilded stucco.

Musées conservant des œuvres de Constant Troyon :
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Chartres, Calouste-Gulbenkian à Lisbonne, Neue Pinakothek à Munich, Art Institute of Chicago, Musée d'Art du comté de Los Angeles, Musée Faure à Aix-les-Bains, musée de l'Oise à Beauvais, Musée Magnin à Dijon, Musée d'art moderne André-Malraux au Havre, Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille, très nombreux tableaux au Musée du Louvre et au Musée d'Orsay à Paris, Musée des Avelines à Saint-Cloud, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Budapest, Wallace Collection à Londres, musée de l'Ermitage à Saint-Pétersbourg …