Lot 136: EDMUND-GEORGES GRANDJEAN FRENCH, 1844-1908 PLACE SAINT-GEORGES, PARIS

signed E Grandjean and dated 1879 (lower right)

oil on canvas

PROVENANCE

Collection of Ben and Clarence Wolf, Philadelphia
EXHIBITED

Paris, Salon, 1879
LITERATURE AND REFERENCES

Louis Viardot, The Masterpieces of French Art, vol. 2, Philadelphia, 1883, illustrated as the frontispiece
CATALOGUE NOTE

The Place Saint-Georges is located in the 9th Arrondissement of Paris, near the church of Sacre Coeur and the Saint-Georges Opera.

Painted in 1879, Grandjean's Place Saint Georges captures the spirit of a nascent Belle Époque Paris. The scene is a contemporary portrayal of the daily hustle and bustle of a city reborn under Baron Haussman in the 1860's, to order, exuberance and splendor. The immaculate streets and spacious square, the imposing facades, and the busy and prosperous population all give testament to Parisians' embrace of their newly modern city.

Edmond Georges Grandjean was a painter of genre scenes and portraits. He entered the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris in October, 1862, and was a pupil of d'Yvon (1817-1893), Signol (1804-1892) and Pils (1813-1875). Grandjean began exhibiting at the Paris Salon in 1865. At the International Exhibitions, he received an honorable mention in 1881 and 1889, a third class medal in 1888, and a second class medal in 1898.

29 1/2 by 39 1/2 in.<br><br>74.9 by 99.7 cm