Spring Landscape / End Of The 19th Century / Signed Martin / Formerly Attributed To Henry Marti

Signed Martin lower right and formerly attributed to the Lot painter Henri Martin, this oil on panel depicts a peaceful valley landscape, seen from a slightly elevated path. There is a dirt path in the foreground, bordered by shrubs, wild vegetation and a flowering tree on the left. The meadows extend below, cut by hedges and punctuated by a few rural buildings with red roofs. On the horizon, a wooded hill closes the composition, bathed in a diffuse, gray light, probably from a cloudy day or late afternoon. The painting is done in oil on panel. The brushstrokes are relatively free, sometimes fragmented, particularly in the treatment of the foliage, grass and the path. There is an atmospheric construction of the landscape, without sharp contours, and a soft perspective through successive fades of the planes, which reinforces the effect of depth and the feeling of spring humidity. The palette is dominated by earthy greens, ochres, grays, with some white highlights in the flowering trees. The light, diffuse and non-directional, contributes to a calm and meditative atmosphere. Aesthetically, the painting is at the crossroads of the naturalism inherited from the Barbizon school and a tempered impressionist sensibility. It evokes at times the painting of Camille Corot or the intimate landscapes of Sisley and Pissarro. We find a tender look at rural nature, without theatricality, in a sincere, attentive and almost silent approach. The whole exudes a great harmony, reinforced by the sobriety of the composition and the delicacy of the treatment of vegetation and distances.

44 x 29 without frame
3 x 38 with frame