Bout-oil On Canvas-signed-adrien Jourdeuil-shoemakers-la Rue Aux Roys-pont-de-l'arche-1886

ADRIEN LOUIS MARIE JOURDEUIL (Saint-Pétersbourg, 1849 – Chambéry, 1907) La Rue aux Roys, à Pont-de-l'Arche (Normandy) Original oil on canvas, signed lower left Canvas dimensions: 196 x 131 cm Exhibited at the Salon of 1886, under the n°1279 Description of the work This monumental painting signed by Adrien Jourdeuil embodies with virtuosity the naturalistic and sensitive view of a painter-architect on the Norman vernacular heritage. Representing the Rue aux Roys in Pont-de-l'Arche, a medieval village in the Eure, the artist delivers an urban scene of striking realism, tinged with documentary poetry. The cobbled street winds between tall half-timbered houses with corbelled roofs, old windows, uneven tiled roofs, lanterns, buckets of water, loose stones. The soft light of the morning or afternoon bathes the scene and reveals each architectural detail with a precision inherited from his initial training as an architect. On the ground, the wet paving stones shine in places, making the humidity of the Normandy air palpable. In the foreground, several seated women are spinning or sewing, representatives of the local slipper industry, very active in Pont-de-l'Arche in the second half of the 19th century. Their postures and expressions, although discreet, convey concentration, fatigue, or resignation. Small elements of life give a human warmth to the composition: a May branch hanging above a door, a quilt at the windows, chickens pecking along the gutter, flowers hanging from a balcony. About the artist Adrien Jourdeuil began his career in Paris in 1877 with a design for a salon for the Grand Duchess Helen of Russia. He exhibited regularly at the Salon des artistes français, receiving: 3rd Class Medal in 1888 2nd Class Medal in 1894 Bronze Medal at the 1900 Universal Exhibition His works are held in the museums of Dieppe, Louviers, Chambéry, and Béziers. A painter deeply attached to social and architectural realism, he embodies a vein of regionalist naturalism from the last quarter of the 19th century. Literary and historical context: This painting is in close dialogue with Octave Mirbeau's novel The Diary of a Chambermaid (1891), which draws inspiration from Pont-de-l'Arche to describe a poor village where its heroine ends up. But while Mirbeau offers a dark and critical picture, Jourdeuil gives a documentary but warm vision, imbued with a silent respect for the place and its inhabitants. Condition of conservation and restoration: Original canvas on a cross-shaped stretcher with keys, sound structure Legible signature at the bottom left Small old restorations visible on the border (top left and top right corner), notably at the sky: slight repainting and occasional retouching Minor wear and rubbing at the edge of the frame, without affecting the main composition No relining, good general condition for a work of this format and from this period Provenance: Private French collection Exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1886 (no. 1279) Estimate: This estimate is based on the quality of conservation, the exceptional format, the presentation at the 1886 Salon, as well as the growing market interest in scenes of regional life and popular architectural heritage of the 19th century. Sold with its certificate of authenticity