Edouard Lambert (1818-?) The Game Of The Pot-breaker In The Park Of Maisons-laffitte

Pierre Edouard LAMBERT
(Bordeaux 1818 - ?)
The game of the pot-breaker in the park of Maisons-Laffitte
Pastel and black chalk on paper
H. 30.5 cm; L. 38 cm
Signed lower right, dated 1865

Exhibition: 1869, Bordeaux, Exposition des Amis des Arts, under number 365 entitled "Village Festival in the Lafite Park - Maisons-sur-Seine".

Lambert seems to have spent his youth in Paris since he exhibited at the Salon des Beaux-Arts at the age of 18, in 1836, and continued to exhibit there at least until 1881. He returned to live in his hometown from 1849 onwards, where he exhibited annually, juggling genre scenes with allegorical figures, portraits with representations of everyday life. Our pastel is a rare subject of festivities, certainly from July 14th given the strong presence of tricolor flags, where the entire population gathers in the Laffitte Park of Maisons-en-Seine, which has since become the town of Maisons-Laffitte. We see a young girl, still dressed in a simple gray dress, without a crinoline, playing the pot-breaking game. Here is an explanation: “The game consists of a hooded participant breaking, within a set time, a terracotta pot suspended from a portico. Using a shovel handle or a stick, they must break the pot in one blow. The audience encourages the participant with shouts that are sometimes contradictory. It is a joyful and noisy cacophony, punctuated by bursts of laughter from the crowd at each missed blow and when the player is showered by the water contained in some of the pots.”
This park, which has changed its appearance today, is nevertheless recognizable by the two entrance pavilions that can be seen in the background of the composition.