Alphonse De Neuville. 1876. The Reveille To The Bugle

Alphonse de Neuville (1835-1885) trained in Picot's studio and had a brilliant career as an illustrator of military subjects, notably for L'Illustration, Le Monde Illustré, and Le Tour du Monde. In parallel, he pursued a successful career as a painter, always of military subjects, and exhibited regularly at the Salon. He collaborated several times with Édouard Detaille, another painter of the same subjects. It also appears that this drawing is from a series created jointly with this one. Indeed, in both drawings, the soldiers are supported by an initial letter, which seems to be an illustration project for a fine book. The pen work, sometimes very fine, sometimes bolder, with highlights of ink washes, is brilliant, full of life, ideal for the elegant depiction of the young trumpeter. It is superbly framed with a wide mat enhanced with watercolor washes in its original frame. A number on the back appears to be an exhibition number. The frame has been slightly damaged; for about a hundred euros extra, I know someone who can repair the missing pieces and restore it to its original condition. Keeping it together with the Detaille drawing from the same series, and framed identically, would be a good idea. In that case, I will do my best to facilitate their meeting. Dimensions of the visible drawing: 24 cm x 15 cm