Gaston Larrieu (1908-1983) “espelette - Basque Country”

Gaston LARRIEU (1908-1983) – Espelette (Basque Country) Oil on canvas – 80 x 60 cm (unframed) / 87.5 x 66.5 cm (framed)Signed lower left – Titled on the backBeautiful post-impressionist composition by the Landes painter Gaston Larrieu, depicting the village of Espelette, in the heart of the Basque Country. The artist, faithful to his energetic and colorful style, delivers here a vibrant and textured vision of typical Basque architecture, with its red-roofed houses huddled around the bell tower. Painted partly with a knife, the work mixes architectural masses and bursts of turquoise, ochre and vermillion in a powerful play of materials, characteristic of his work from the 1960s and 70s. The lively and structured brushstroke evokes the dynamism of village life in the bright light of the Southwest. Canvas in good condition, mounted on an original stretcher and framed with a simple wooden strip. An emblematic piece by this painter attached to his native region. Biography: Gaston Larrieu, born in Eugenie les bains near Mont-de-Marsan in 1910, was a French painter, engraver and poster artist, renowned for his landscapes of the Southwest, the Pyrenees and Spain. He exhibited regularly in Paris and the Southwest, and his works are present in numerous public and private collections.