Lot 65: Alfred Duriau, (Belgian, 1877-1958), "Les Jardiniers", oil on canvas, 20-3/4" x 13-7/8"

Alfred Duriau
(Belgian, 1877-1958)

"Les Jardiniers"

oil on canvas
signed lower right. Framed and affixed with an artist plaque.
20-3/4" x 13-7/8"

Notes: A native of Mons, Belgium, Duriau studied with the engraver Auguste Danse (1829-1929) at l'Academie des Beaux-Arts de Mons. Upon the completion of his studies, he was named a professor of the school, a position he was to maintain until 1947. In 1906, Duriau was awarded the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1906, which enabled him to travel and study in Italy. Ostensibly awarded the prize for engraving, Duriau was an accomplished painter and took this opportunity to explore his approach to painting. The work presented here, with its painterly brushstroke, rich color palette, and masterful juxtaposition of light and shadow, is redolent of the artist Maximilien Luce (1858-1941), as evidenced by that artist's painting of the young gardener offered in the previous lot. A work byt the artist is conserved at the Bergen Kunstmuseum, Bergen, Norway.