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Painting depicting a crowd of figures gathered in an art studio observing several seated artists painting on canvases supported by easels throughout the room, with sunlight shining in from a partially-covered skylight.

The Artist's Studio

Auguste-Xavier Leprince

In his short lifetime, Auguste-Xavier Leprince became a well-known artist and master of his own studio. Trained by his father, painter and lithographer Anne-Pierre Leprince, he worked in the academic tradition, which offered rigorous training based on the study of ancient art. In this painting, Leprince offers a glimpse into an academic artist’s studio of the 1820s. The highly detailed canvas shows how artists worked, what tools were used, and how brushes were held. Plaster casts of well-known classical sculptures, including the Laocöon and the Venus de Milo, are displayed around the room. Two classical busts, perched high on a shelf at right, appear to look down like spectators on the informal assembly of students, patrons, and critics. Leprince is the figure seen from the back in profile seated before the large painting to the right of center. The canvas he is working on is Loading of Livestock at Honfleur, which he exhibited in the Paris Salon of 1824 and was purchased two years later by King Charles X of France. The inscription on the stretcher notes that this painting was commissioned by M. du Sommerard, Leprince’s chief patron. In 1869 it was purchased by Octave de Labastie, the figure seated before an easel, fifth from the left. The only other identifiable figure is the artist’s father, who stands just to the left of his son’s canvas.
Artist
Auguste-Xavier Leprince
(French, 1799 - 1826)
Title
The Artist's Studio
Date
1826
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
28 11/16 x 36 3/8 in. Overall
Credit
Harry and Margaret P. Glicksman, Juli Plant Grainger, John S. Lord, and Earl O. Vits Endowment Funds, and Norman Bassett Foundation Fund purchase
Accession No.
1982.58
Classification
Paintings
Geography
France

Related

1826-1843, M. Dusommerard; 11-13 December 1843, sale [no. 197] (Paris, France); François Delessert; 16 March 1869, sold to Octave de Labastie; 1982, Hazlitt, Gooden & Fox Ltd. (London, England) sold to the Elvehjem Museum of Art [now called Chazen Museum of Art]

  • Beetem, Robert. "An Artist's Studio in 1826 by August-Xavier Leprince." Bulletin/Annual Report 1985-1986, Elvehjem Museum of Art (1986): 17-28. pp. 17-28
  • Elvehjem Museum of Art. "Handbook of the Collection." Elvehjem Museum of Art, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Madison, 1990. no. 78
  • Olausson, Magnus. "In the Artist's Studio: Auguste-Xavier Leprince and the Studio Interior and an Artistic Strategy." Art Bulletin of Nationalmuseum Stockholm, vol. 26.1 (2020): http://nationalmuseum.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1473800/FULLTEXT01.pdf pp. 53-58, fig. 1
  • Gautier, Bertrand and Bertrand Talabardon. "Le XIXe Siecle." Sale catalogue. Paris: Talabardon & Gautier: Tabeaux, Dessins, Sculptures, 2002, (December 5-21, 2002) n.p., cat. no. 11

  • In the Studio: Chazen Museum of Art, 6/1/2019–8/11/2019
  • Director's Legacy, A: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 10/7/1983–11/20/1983
  • Salon of 1827, Paris: Paris Salon

Painting depicting an art studio filled with a crowd of people engaging in painting, observation, and socializing. Scattered throughout the studio are several artists seated on stools and holding paint pallets in front of canvases held up by wooden easels. Standing behind the artists is a crowd of onlookers who appear to be observing or conversing with the artists. Three figures stand on a staircase along the back wall of the studio. All the figures wear dark-colored pants and suitcoats with white collared shirts.  On the left side of the studio, several artists wear blue smocks over their suits. A small group of figures on the right side of the canvas look different than the others as one artist wears a red smock and white apron, and another artist wears a long white coat. These artists are interacting with a man standing before them wearing a long, fur-lined red overcoat. The studio has terracotta tiled floors, green walls, and a high ceiling that slants down to the left. Horizontal beams support the ceiling above the studio. Sunlight fills the space through a large skylight on the slanted ceiling on the left. The skylight is draped with a large, dark piece of fabric that swoops down and back, partially blocking the skylight. An ancient marble bust and a few framed paintings adorn the studio. A white dog lies on the floor near the center of the room, and a cat peeks through the skylight from above.  

The Chazen Museum of Art welcomes comments or inquiries about works in our collection. Please allow two–three weeks for a response. Chazen staff is not able to provide valuations or authentications and such inquiries cannot be answered.

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