Lot 116: LEON DU PATY

1829 - 1929 VIEW OF PALACE SQUARE THROUGH THE ADMIRALTY ARCH signed in Latin l.l. oil on canvas 65.5 by 55cm, 25 3/4 by 21 1/2 in.

A successful painter of military and historical genre scenes, du Paty and his wife were close friends of Edouard Manet, who painted a portrait of Madame du Paty in 1879. In this accomplished depiction of this famous corner of St Petersburg, du Paty depicts both high and low society, military officers and society ladies. It is not known when du Paty arrived in St Petersburg, but the bookseller Wilhelm Leontovich Veidle, depicted on the right hand side, was not given an Imperial appointment until 1876.