Maximilien Luce (1858-1941) - Landscape Of Trees, Drawing, Signed.

This drawing by Maximilien Luce offers a particularly sensitive example of his work on paper, in which the artist deploys a free, direct writing style, far removed from the more rigorous constructions of his painted compositions.

Some plant masses structure the space, suggested by a play of supple strokes and light washes. The landscape, reduced to its essentials, gives way to a silent, almost suspended atmosphere. Here, the economy of means - ink and graphite - accurately captures the variations in light and the breathing of the motif.

A fellow traveler of Georges Seurat and Paul Signac, Maximilien Luce is one of the major figures of Neo-Impressionism. In the 1880s, he adopted the principles of Divisionism, exploring the effects of light and color through a rigorous technique. However, from the turn of the century onwards, his language gradually became more flexible, evolving towards a freer, more sensitive and often more intimate style - a development particularly evident in his drawings.

Born in Paris in 1858 into a modest family, Luce began as an apprentice engraver before training as a painter. Marked by the events of the Paris Commune, of which he retains a lasting memory, he developed a body of work attentive to the social realities of his time.

Engaged, he contributed to several anarchist publications and took part in the artistic life of his time, exhibiting regularly with the Société des Artistes Indépendants, of which he became president in 1935. His work, both luminous and profoundly human, has recently been the subject of renewed interest, as evidenced by the exhibition devoted to him at the Musée de Montmartre.

Maximilien Luce's works on paper occupy a singular place in his output. More spontaneous, they offer direct access to his eye and sensibility.

A signed drawing by a major Neo-Impressionist artist, this landscape stands out for the quality of its execution and the accuracy of its atmosphere. Maximilien Luce's works on paper, which are rarer on the market than his paintings, are sought after today for their spontaneity and closeness to the artist's gesture.