Angèle - François Joseph Guiguet (1860-1937)

An oil on canvas measuring 46 x 38 cm depicting Angèle, the artist's niece (1899-1981), signed upper right "F.Guiguet 1905" by François Joseph Guiguet (1860-1937).

We thank Madame Annie Humbert, sole legatee of Louis Guiguet, nephew of the painter François Joseph Guiguet, for confirming the authenticity of this work, which is well-documented in her archives.

François Joseph Guiguet, French painter and lithographer, born in Corbelin (Isère) on January 8, 1860, and died in the same town on September 3, 1937.

Around 1876, during a visit, Dr. Gauthier, the family doctor, was surprised by the quality of his drawings. He then advised his parents to seek the advice of the painter Auguste Ravier (1814-1895), who lived in Morestel, a neighboring village. He immediately recognized Guiguet's work as a sure talent. For three years, he gave his disciple valuable advice: the use and utilization of the variety of drawing tools, respect for values, a sense of composition, the use and advantage of pastel, which Ravier rarely used, to obtain rapid and luminous notations, the practice of oil painting, etc. This teaching allowed Guiguet to arrive already trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Lyon in 1879, on Ravier's recommendation. There, he was admitted to the studio of Michel Dumas (1812-1885), where the latter had been appointed professor the previous year. This former student of Ingres, with whom he had spent more than 16 years in Italy, was a faithful guardian of his master's artistic tradition. A specialist in religious subjects and large-scale church mural decorations, he confirmed Guiguet's taste and the need for pure drawing, while teaching him the organization of classical decorative painting.

In 1882, Guiguet won the Prix de Paris, which allowed him to continue his studies at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts in the capital with an annual stipend of 1,200 francs. Supported by Édouard Aynard, director of the Museum Administration Commission, and Antonin Dubost, deputy for Isère, Guiguet settled in Paris. He was admitted to the studio of Alexandre Cabanel (1823-1889).

He made his debut at the Salon des artistes français in 1885 with The Return of Young Tobias.

From 1889, he lived at 13 rue Ravignan, which later became the Bateau-Lavoir, where he had his studio until 1905. This was also the time of his engagement to Juliette Dubois, the daughter of a Parisian property dealer, whom he often portrayed during this period.

François Guiguet became friends with Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, Edgar Degas, and Luigi Chialiva (1842-1914), who introduced him to the techniques of the Old Masters. Through these encounters and support, and through his friendship with Félix Thiollier, he forged a strong personality. Between 1893 and 1910, Guiguet produced color lithographs, including publications in L'Estampe moderne (1897) and L'Estampe nouvelle (1905).

In 1905, he left the Bateau-Lavoir for 21 rue de Navarin in Paris, where he enjoyed a larger studio, which he retained until his death.

In 1914, he returned to his birthplace in Corbelin and rented a room at 8 Cours Lafayette in Lyon from his sister-in-law Émilie Champetier, widow of his brother Joanny. He worked primarily in his clients' homes for portrait commissions or in the studio of the Lyon-based painter Léon Garraud.

François Guiguet was highly regarded as a portraitist, completing his works only after extensive preparatory studies and numerous sitting sessions. In addition to commissioned portraits, he painted the lives of artisans (blacksmiths, carpenters, seamstresses, etc.) and, to a lesser extent, landscapes and still lifes. He found a source of inspiration in his birthplace.

He died in 1937.