Antoine Bouvard - Gondolier On A Canal In Venice. Oil On Canvas

Pretty view of a Venice canal with a gondolier, painted by Antoine BOUVARD (1870-1956). Original canvas and gilded frame. Very beautiful work by this painter who painted almost exclusively Venice. Antoine Bouvard, Saint-Jean-de-Bournay, 1870 - 1956 was a French landscaper who often painted under the pseudonym Marc Aldine. Bouvard remains best known for his renderings of Venetian canal scenes, painted in warm tones and hazy light that often accompanies sunset. A typical work is A Gondolier Before a Venetian Bridge, depicting the famous Italian city's grand canal in a realistic style that remained popular with tourists throughout his career. He was particularly influenced by the French painter Félix Ziem, also appreciated for his poetic depictions of maritime scenes and port towns. Bouvard was born in 1870 in Saint-Jean-de-Bournay in L'Isère, France, and continued his studies at the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, becoming friends with the French architect Constant- Dufeux who helped shape his career and aesthetic. He finally became director of the architectural services of the Seine in parallel with his career as a painter and was accredited for the construction of the Bourse du Travail in Paris. Although the artist remained based in Paris, he traveled frequently to Italy to paint Venice by observation, preferring to sell his work to dealers rather than having a public life. His son, Noël Bouvard, followed in his footsteps to become a landscape painter in a style similar to that of his father. Antoine Bouvard died in 1956.