Henri MARTIN (1860 - 1943) Lot n° 25

Profil de jeune fille en contre-jour Oil on canvas Frame by Henri Bellery-Desfontaine (1867 - 1909) after a drawing by Henri Martin Oil on canvas, frame by Henri Bellery-Desfontaine (1867 - 1909) after a drawing by Henri Martin 56,5 x 41 cm - 22 1/4 x 16 1/8 in. A certificate of Mr Cyrille Martin, dated November 3, 2003, will be given to the purchaser PROVENANCE - Private collection, France (acquired from the artist and then by descent) - Sale, Impressionist and Modern Art, Christie's, Paris, November 28, 2012, lot 11 "For Henri Martin the human presence also serves, in particular, to highlight the light, an obsession of his art. Thus, a little girl from Labastide-du-Vert was one of his favorite models because her red hair attracted the light well. A painting that represents a young woman in profile at mid-body is simply entitled In the light, young peasant girl in full sun (before 1899, Museum of Fine Arts in Mulhouse) is an alibi to try to translate the intensity of light, at the zenith; for Gabrielle à la vigne vierge the reddish glow of the vine colors the face that merges with the foliage. When the artist chooses to paint his son Jacques "against the light" at the threshold of his garden, the young man is only the counterpart of the light that radiates around his appearance almost dissolving his silhouette. Claude Juskiewenski, "La présence humaine dans l'oeuvre d'Henri Martin", in. Henri Martin (1860 - 1943), Du rêve au quotidien, Peintures conservées dans les collections publiques françaises, cat. expo, Milan : Silvana, 2008, pp. 48-49