Ferdinand Gueldry - Drawing - Militaria - Soldiers - 1916

A gorgeous and highly detailed drawing by the painter Ferdinand Gueldry, created in 1916 or 1917, depicts a hospital train at a platform, transporting wounded soldiers to whom nurses are distributing meals.

This drawing is believed to have been featured in a 1917 issue of the "Journal des ouvrages de dames" (see last photo).

When war broke out in 1914, Gueldry was ineligible for military service due to his age (56).
In 1915, he was appointed official painter of the Army Museum and granted permission to visit the front.
He then painted the daily lives of soldiers and the harsh realities of war, in Champagne, at the Chemin des Dames, and at the Ravine of Death in Verdun.

A student of Jean-Léon Gérôme, Ferdinand Gueldry is a highly sought-after painter, particularly for his rowing and boating scenes, which can fetch over €100,000 at auction, though they frequently sell for around €20,000–€30,000.
His masterpieces are almost all owned by institutions, such as "The Lock at Molesey" at the Musée de Nogent-sur-Marne.
He produced relatively few works (approximately 250 known paintings), focusing on creating high-quality paintings intended for exhibition at various Salons, notably the Salon des Artistes Français, where he exhibited his works 54 times between 1878 and 1938, winning awards four times !
He was made a Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1908.
Meticulous and demanding, always striving for perfect compositions (hence the considerable preparation involved), he devoted a great deal of time to the creation of his major paintings, many of them large-format works, which were regularly acquired by the French State.
He stopped painting in 1938 and spent the last years of his life in Switzerland, where he died in 1945.

Here you have the opportunity to acquire a work by this rare and exceptionally talented artist : a superb historical scene, almost documentary.
Furthermore, Gueldry's drawings are very rare on the art market, and virtually impossible to find in this quality !

Pencil, wash, and highlights of white (oxidized) gouache on paper, mounted in the corners on cardboard.

The drawing measures 31.4 x 24 cm (unframed)

Signed lower right

Very good overall condition

Photos taken in natural light

AUTHENTICITY GUARANTEED - Sale with invoice from our gallery.
We are writing the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of Ferdinand GUELDRY

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