Marcel Azema (1904–1999) — Mouliherne In The Snow, Maine-et-loire

■ Oil on canvas, signed lower left "Azéma-Billa"
■ Dimensions: canvas 61 x 49.5 cm — with frame 62 x 52 cm
■ The painting depicts the village of Mouliherne (Maine-et-Loire) under snow, dominated by the twisted bell tower of the Church of Saint-Germain (12th–16th century, designated a historic monument), visible through a curtain of tall, bare poplars—a composition characteristic of the artist, who painted numerous winter scenes in Anjou
Marcel Azéma, known as Azéma-Billa, was born in Paris on August 15, 1904. As the nephew of the painter Ernest Azéma (winner of the Prix de Rome for painting), it was from him that he received his first drawing lessons. Over the course of his career, he received several awards, including the Othon Friesz Prize and the Meurand Prize from the Institut de France in 1951. He exhibited notably at the art salons in Angers and Toulouse, where he lived in the 1950s and served as president of the Salon des Artistes Occitans. Later, while living in Brain-sur-l’Authion, near Angers, he devoted a large part of his work to the landscapes of Anjou.