"French Landscape" Impressionist Oil Painting by Jean D'Esparbes

This impressionist oil painting poetically interprets a garden, where aesthetics blend with a scene shaped by human thought and touch. It is a rare example of French painter Jean d'Esparbès' landscapes, distinct from his celebrated portraits. The painting illustrates his dual identity as a "painter and poet of Montmartre," rooted in Paris's mythical, historical, and artistic heart. Eschewing realist conventions and minimizing perspective, the work directs attention to detail in favor of emotional evocation and deeply subjective expression. It echoes the stylistic characteristics of early twentieth-century modernism, particularly the post-impressionist influences that embraced vivid color and abstraction without yielding entirely to formalism.

The composition is rigorously structured: In the foreground, the reflecting pool imposes itself as an annual attraction. The assertive brushstrokes divide its surface into dynamic strokes, evoking the undulating softness of water. This treatment of light and texture reflects the innovative techniques of artists such as André Derain and Maurice de Vlaminck, who sought to translate inner resonance and intuitive connection rather than reproduce a physical reality. Trees and vegetation are presented as sculptures, their forms simplified into almost geometric masses for those in the foreground. Carved with precision, they suggest a dialogue with Art Deco aesthetics, where nature is reinterpreted through the prism of modern design. The tawny palette—saturated greens, soft pinks, and warm ochres—is delineated by clean, sharp contours. The colors are pushed to their maximum intensity, creating a powerful contrast, each shade standing out vigorously.

There is no modulation or search for gradation. The systematization of simplified forms, combined with the boldness of the chromatic posture, places the work in a register where feeling takes precedence. With its diaphanous clouds rendered in broad, flat tints, the sky stands out clearly against the dense vegetation, underlining the tension between celestial immensity and terrestrial compactness. The formal arrangement of elements—the trees as guardians of symmetry, the pool of water as a mirror of the heavens—invites meditative engagement, a retreat into a space that is both real and idealized. It echoes the Romantic desire for an Edenic landscape while acknowledging the Modernist impulse to impose structure and design on the natural world.

D'Esparbès, renowned for his sad and tender human figures, rarely ventured into landscapes, making this piece unique and a fine choice for collectors drawn to distinctive and uncommon works.

- B I O -

Born on March 9, 1899, in Verneuil-sur-Seine (France), Jean d’Esparbès grew up in an artistic and intellectual environment. His father, Georges d’Esparbès, was the curator of the Château de Fontainebleau and a historian passionate about the Napoleonic era. Jean's early years were spent amidst the cultural gatherings at the château, where artists and intellectuals frequently met.
Showing an early interest in painting, Jean was encouraged by his father, who provided him with an atelier in the Pavillon des Aumôniers. Too young to serve during World War I, he studied at the École des Arts Décoratifs, solidifying his artistic foundation.
During Montmartre’s cultural renaissance, Jean immersed himself in the local artistic community, meeting figures such as André Derain, Amedeo Modigliani, and Francis Carco. He also befriended Marcel Aymé, who described his work as exploring "a secret world expressed in shades of troubled green, the color of his dreams."
Jean’s art, primarily focused on human figures—self-portraits, musicians, clowns, and biblical characters—also included rare, inhabited landscapes. His compositions often conveyed melancholy, reflecting his preoccupation with mortality, softened by moments of tenderness, particularly in his depictions of sleeping children.
From 1920 onward, d’Esparbès exhibited widely, including at the Salon des Indépendants and the Salon d'Automne. One of his notable works, Jeu de Massacre (1924), is housed in the Strasbourg Museum. He also gained local recognition in Montmartre, where his works were displayed in cafés and galleries, particularly at his Rue Saint-Vincent studio beneath the Saint-Vincent cemetery.
In 1970, two years after his death on December 4, 1968, a plaque was unveiled at his studio in recognition of his contribution to Montmartre’s artistic community. A retrospective at the Montmartre Museum 1988 further cemented his legacy as a unique voice in French art.

REFERENCE NUMBER: LU654315481822
PERIOD: 1920-1929
CONDITION: Good
MEASUREMENTS: Height: 19.5" Width: 23.25" Depth: 0.75"
COUNT: 1
MATERIAL: Oil
CREATOR: Jean d'Esparbès