Jean-georges Pasquet (1851-1936) The Dunes At Saint Georges De Didonne Royan Charente

Jean-Georges PASQUET
(Périgueux 1851 - 1936)
The dunes at Saint Georges de Didonne
Oil on cardboard
H. 20 cm; W. 26 cm
Signed and dated 1926 lower left

Provenance: Private collection, Périgueux

Jean-Georges Pasquet was born in 1851 in Périgueux. After a childhood in the Périgord region, which is very poorly documented, the young artist arrived in Paris and joined the École des Beaux-Arts, where he graduated a few years later. He returned to his land in 1879 to take over the direction of the Municipal Drawing School of Périgueux, and also became a drawing teacher at the Boys' and Girls' Teacher Training Colleges. A student of Gustave Boulanger, Jules Lefèvre and Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant, the painter set up his easel on the banks of the Dordogne or the Isle to "tell a few memories" through realistic landscapes filled with gentleness. Through his style, the painter lets his compatriots see a great idea of his country and his origins. We find works stripped of artifice, representing inhabitants of the region, working their land or simply strolling along paths. These paintings or drawings by Pasquet retrace the life of Périgord at the dawn and during the 20th century, always situated in very specific places. He is one of the artists of the School of Périgueux. This school, somewhat forgotten in the history of art, highlights the heritage and identity of the Périgord region. Representatives include Jean-Louis Daniel, André Saigne, Georges Darnet, René Laforest, Roger Favard, and André Prugent. This movement has as its common denominator a theme that stands out from the canons of the time: landscape.
"It was a school without a leader and without a dominant style, but which worked with extraordinary enthusiasm. They loved to tackle pieces of nature that we call picadis here."
Jean-Michel Linfort

The artist painted the Dordogne but not only that, he traveled to the Creuse and very regularly to Saint Georges de Didonne. There he painted rivers, the sea, ports, bridges, dunes, and forests. So many motifs that he knows how to transcribe and to which he brings to life thanks to the vivid colors and the movement given to his brush, to give relief to the landscapes.

Saint Georges de Didonne holds an important place in Pasquet's work, whether inland or on the coast. In his image, he produces here a luminous work where the waters of a summer afternoon sparkle. The dunes in the foreground, the inlet in the middle, and finally the strip of land where the lighthouse stands are a harmony of colors that the painter leaves to posterity.