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paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste pastepaste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste paste pastean image of a painting of a sky and clouds in a gold framea roll of brown paper hanging from the ceilingan image of a picture of a picture of a picture of a picture of a picture of a picture of a picture of a picture of a picture of a picturea sculpture of a man standing in front of a white wall
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Estimate €12,000 - €18,000
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Description
Eugène BOUDIN Study of a Sky – circa 1860–1866 Pastel on cream laid paper Initials stamped in the bottom right-hand corner ‘E.B.’ (Lugt L. 828), collector’s stamp in the bottom left-hand corner, stamp and numbering on the reverse ‘JGH No. 18’ 16.5 x 21 cm Provenance: Troyes Auction, Boisseau Pomez – Ivoire France, 28 January 2017, lot 213 Galerie Éric Coatalem, Paris Galerie de la Présidence, Paris Acquired from the latter by the current owner on 10 March 2018 Louis Grandchamp des Raux Collection Exhibitions: Paris, Galerie Éric Coatalem, Works on Paper & Sketches 2017, 2017, reproduced Bibliography: This work will be included in the Catalogue Raisonné of works on paper by Eugène Boudin (1824–1898), currently in preparation. Pastel on paper; stamped with the initials in the lower right-hand corner, collection stamp in the lower left-hand corner, stamped and numbered on the reverse; 6 1/2 x 8 1/4 in. A quick and airy technique, pastel allowed Boudin to convey fleeting impressions. It is a medium whose flexibility makes it possible to capture the changing nature of cloudy skies and their play of light. The great importance the painter attached to the skies in his seascapes and landscapes gave rise to numerous pastel studies. Our sheet depicts an azure sky, the blue of which shines through the clouds with brilliance. The atmospheric study occupies the greater part of the composition; the sea is depicted by an arrangement of darker lines in the lower section. ‘The king of the skies’, as Corot was wittily dubbed, brilliantly masters the poetic representation of this ever-changing and constantly renewing expanse. Boudin himself admits that these landscapes and seascapes are merely pretexts for depicting the skies, the true subjects of his works. He was a forerunner of the Impressionists’ work and took part in the movement’s first exhibition, organised at the photographer Nadar’s studio in 1874. Claude Monet, whom he met in 1856, was always grateful to him for encouraging him to paint en plein air. During Boudin’s lifetime, pastels featured in large numbers at exhibitions (Paul Durand-Ruel exhibited 216 of Boudin’s pastels in his gallery in 1891) and at auctions. Following a sale at Drouot on 25 March 1868, the artist noted that his ‘pastels, so difficult to get people to accept, were almost all snapped up by painters’: Alexandre Dumas the Younger, Constant Troyon and Camille Corot were among the buyers. A letter from Manuel Schmit will be handed over to the buyer. This work is catalogued in his archives under the reference ‘B-P.7576- Ciel // E-17.04.04-1.V’. Eugène BOUDIN 16.5 x 21 cm With its quick and ethereal nature, pastel allowed Boudin to convey the most fleeting of impressions. The malleability of the medium made it possible to capture the ever-changing clouds and their luminous effects. The great importance the painter attached to the skies in his seascapes and landscapes led to numerous studies of the subject in pastel. This work depicts a deep azure sky where the blue breaks through the clouds with brilliance. This atmospheric study occupies the bulk of the composition; the sea is depicted by a pattern of darker lines in the lower section. “The King of the Skies”, as Corot so aptly described Boudin, displays his mastery here in the poetic representation of this expanse, which is ever-shifting and constantly renewing itself. Boudin himself admitted that these landscapes and seascapes were merely pretexts for depicting the sky, the true subject of his works. A forerunner of the Impressionists, he took part in the movement’s first exhibition, held at the studio of the photographer Nadar in 1874. And Claude Monet, whom he met in 1856, was always grateful to Boudin for having been the one to encourage him to paint outdoors. During Boudin’s lifetime, his pastels were shown in numerous exhibitions (Paul Durand-Ruel exhibited 216 of Boudin’s pastels in his gallery in 1891) and at auction. The artist himself remarked, following a sale at Drouot on 25 March 1868, that his “pastels, so difficult to get accepted, were almost all purchased by other painters”. Among the buyers were Alexandre Dumas the Younger, Constant Troyon and Camille Corot.
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About the sale The Louis Grandchamp des Raux Collection
Auction location
Auction time 10/24/2026 at 4:00 PM
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