Hippolyte Lalaisse (1812–1884) - Stallion In The Stable - Oil

Francois Hippolyte LALAISSE
(Nancy, 1812 – Paris, 1884)

Stallion in the stable

Oil on canvas
Signed lower left
68 x 95cm

Son of Augustin DELALAISSE, surveyor and Thérèse Barbe Louise PERREZ, he arrived in Paris in the 1830s where he became a pupil of Nicolas CHARLET, from whom he took over as drawing teacher at the École Polytechnique from 1839 to 1877. It is in gratitude for these good and loyal services that he will be made a Knight of the Legion of Honor in 1875.

Hippolyte LALAISSE participated in the Paris Salon between 1845 and 1874. Renowned for his animal paintings, in particular of horses, sent to official salons, the press of the time dedicated several times flattering comments to him, of which here are some examples:
- "The horses of Mr. Lalaisse are of an excellent and true painting" by A. de La Fizelière in Salon of 1850-1851,
- “The horse of oriental race, by Mr. Lalaisse, is perfectly studied. The look, the dress, the whole, everything seems very good to us in this painting. » in Journal des beaux-arts of July 15, 1849, p.50,
- “He rode as well as Carle Vernet – which is saying something. All his studies are very beautiful. The drawing is vigorous, the color solid, the musculature excellent. » in The Hôtel Drouot and curiosity in 1883-1884, p. 339,
- “Hippolyte Lalaisse was more than an excellent draftsman. Endowed with a flexible and varied talent, possessing remarkable qualities of observation that Géricault, his first master, had immediately distinguished, he had been first an engraver, then an aquafortist, and he was not long in signaling himself in turn. turn as a landscape painter, animal painter, genre painter, and, above all, as a painter of military subjects and watercolourist”. in The Review of Ancient and Modern Art by Émile Dacier, p. 74.

Naturally shy, the artist lived in retirement and had in the long run, thanks to his talent, a particular clientele. When they bought a canvas from him, Lalaisse would paint them, on top of that, their horses, and their team.

He was also a prolific lithographer, especially in the representation of Breton regional costumes and uniforms.

Museums: Bagnères-de-Bigorre, Chaumont, Lons-le-Saunier, Strasbourg…