Koller View 3/21

12 Eugène Louis Boudin Boudin, who belonged to the first generation of plein air painters, excelled in depicting seascapes and the daily lives of fishermen. He often chose to paint his homeland of Normandy between Dieppe and Cherbourg, with its picturesque rocky coast. Corot referred to Boudin as the ‘king of the sky’ because of the atmospheric cloud formations in his paintings. Boudin’s last wish was to die with a view of the sea, which he was granted in Deauville in 1898. The harbour scene offered in our autumn auction of 19 th Century Paintings was created in the fashionable seaside resort of Trouville, which, like many other coastal towns in Normandy, was a popular destination for the Parisian haute bourgeoisie and the British upper class from the mid-19 th century through the Belle Époque. Eugène Louis Boudin (1824–1898). Trouville. Les jetées. Marée haute. 1894. Oil on panel. 32 × 41 cm. Estimate: CHF 60 000/80 000 Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot This painting is a characteristic example of Corot’s landscapes and those of the Barbizon School, which he helped shape. Corot made plein air studies during several trips to Italy, later completing them in his studio. His ability to reproduce light and atmosphere as defining elements formed the basis of a new understanding of landscape painting and the emergence of Impressionism. Corot subsequently influenced numerous French artists. His fellow painter Louis Car­ bonnel famously said: ‘Without Corot there would be neither Gadan nor Carbonnel. There would be no light’. Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot (1796–1875). Le Chevrier (Souvenir d’Italie). 1872. Oil on canvas. 65.5 × 81.2 cm. Estimate: CHF 80 000/120 000 Paul Désiré Trouillebert Trouillebert’s paysages intimes, like this one, fit seamlessly into the pre-impressionist currents surrounding the Barbizon school. His stylistic closeness to Corot is apparent in the subjects Trouillebert painted, elegiac river and alluvial landscapes. Here we can see the artists’ direct approach to nature, devoid of any idealisation. They both devoted their attention to rendering the most delicate expressions of nature, light and air, sky and water in their very own materiality. Paul Désiré Trouillebert (1829–1900). Le faucheur et un rameur sur la rivière. Oil on canvas. 85 × 113.5 cm. Estimate: CHF 30 000/40 000