Paul Simons (1865-1932) Martigues, Figures On The Quai Poterne

Martigues, the famous Provençal Venice which was the great source of inspiration and one of the favorite subjects of Provençal artists of the 19th and early 20th centuries.
The work is done in oil on canvas, it is offered in a simple, gilded frame, which measures 71.5 cm by 53 cm and 61.5 cm by 43.5 cm for the canvas alone.
It represents characters on the Quai Poterne in the background the famous Maison au Chapeau de Gendarme which was the setting for the film "La Cuisine au Beurre".
In good condition, it is signed lower right.
A picturesque and anecdotal work, a lovely testimony to a bygone era.

A student of Luc-Olivier Merson and Jean-Paul Laurens, he exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français, of which he was a member from 1886 to 1897: "Return from Hunting" (1886), "An Amateur's Corner" (1887), "Church Interior" (1888), "Sunrise, October Mists, and Winter Morning" (1889), "In the Fields, Idyll" (1895), "Barbarian Times, After the Carnage" (1896).
He became a drawing inspector for the schools of the city of Paris.
In 1902, he was appointed official painter of the Navy and the Colonies.
In 1903, he married Jeanne Marie Antoinette Gaillard in Paris.
The man of letters André Rivoire was a major witness at the wedding.
He died on February 16, 1932 at the age of 65.

Distinctions
Knight of the Legion of Honor in 1911
Officer of the Legion of Honor in 1920