Blanche Odin (1865–1957) Bouquet Of Zinnias Framed Watercolor Under Glass, Signed, 27 X 37 Cm

Blanche ODIN (Troyes 1865 – Bagnères-de-Bigorre 1957)
Bouquet of zinnias
Watercolor signed lower right 27 x 37.5 cm
Framed under glass
Some wear to the frame

Blanche Odin was born in 1865 in Troyes. In 1876, she and her mother left northern France for Maubourguet in the Hautes-Pyrénées. She regularly traveled to Bagnères-de-Bigorre for health treatments. Every year, she spent a few months taking painting lessons in Paris. She became a student of Madelaine Lemaire. When she returned to Maubourguet, she gave watercolor lessons. In 1900, she opened a studio in Paris and became a successful artist. Her works were exhibited at the World’s Fair, and she exhibited and sold watercolors at the Salon des Femmes Peintres.Flowers gradually became the central theme of her painting. Initially, the background of her watercolors featured a fabric hanging with floral motifs or a draped curtain, with the bouquets blooming in various types of transparent vases, made of earthenware, stoneware, or Chinese porcelain. The flowers were vibrant; the artist mastered the use of water and color. Then, over the years, her palette became more vivid and her work took on a more modern style. From 1934 until the end of her life, she painted against a neutral background where the flowers appeared even more vibrant. The rough texture of the paper creates a powdery effect through the layering of pigments and water. She settled permanently at 6 Rue Gambetta in Bagnères-de-Bigorre in 1934, while continuing to exhibit at the Georges Petit Gallery in Paris. From 1934 to 1957, the year of her death, the residents of Bagnères, spa guests, and tourists would remember this petite lady who painted in front of her window on Rue Gambetta……Blanche Odin left behind a prolific body of work consisting of lovely bouquets of flowers that attest to her talent as a watercolorist, as well as a few landscapes, primarily of the Pyrenees, also in watercolor.