Alphonse Moutte (1840-1913) Rest Before The Hearth

A great specialist in the genre scene and an outstanding draftsman, always a witness to his time, to bucolic life and human activities in Provence in the 19th century, Alphonse Moutte has once again produced an intimate and realistic work, with perfect drawing, the rest of a man in front of the hearth; the latter certainly being an artist in his interior since we can see a canvas hanging on the wall and plaster sculptures on the pediment of the fireplace. The work in very good condition is done in oil on a wooden panel, it is offered in a simple golden frame which measures 37.5 cm by 27 cm and 26 cm by 15.5 cm for the panel alone.
A high quality work that is difficult to take a photo of, and much more beautiful in reality.
It is signed lower right

Born into an old Provencal family, he took classes at the Thiers high school where he rubbed shoulders with Horace Bertin, then at the Marseille School of Fine Arts where he notably had Émile Loubon as a teacher. He abandoned the profession of wheat broker to continue learning his art in Paris and worked in the workshop of Ernest Meissonier, whom a friend introduced him to. Returning to Marseille in 1891, he succeeded Dominique Antoine Magaud in 1895 as director of the Marseille School of Fine Arts. This city and its region offer him his main subjects of inspiration. He becomes a prominent personality; his paintings adorn regional museums. He painted portraits, genre scenes and views of the port of Marseille which are testimonies of Marseille life of his time: his painting The Landing of Wheat in Marseille is one of the most evocative. He exhibited at the Salon of French Artists from 1869 to 1913 and obtained several awards: 3rd class medal in 1881 for Un coin de plage du Prado le matin and another 2nd class medal in 1882 for The fishermen's lunch. He received a silver and a bronze medal respectively at the Universal Exhibitions of 1889 and 1900. He also attended the Exhibitions of the Association of Marseille Artists, of which he was president for a time. Moreover, he created a painted ceiling (the Aurore) in 1902 for the Château d'Avignon in the Camargue. In 1892 he was named a member of the Academy of Marseille and in 1893 he was made a Knight of the Legion of Honor. Finally, in 1896, he succeeded Dominique Magaud as director of the Marseille School of Fine Arts and, in 1903, was named first director of the Regional School of Architecture, a position he held until his death. : “already ill, he could not resist the loss of his grandson in 1913” and he died in Marseille on April 21, 1913 in his property, Traverse de la Croix de Fer. A boulevard bears his name in the 13th arrondissement of Marseille (Saint-Just district). His paintings can be found in several Fine Arts museums: In Aix en Provence (entrance to the Port of Marseille on a clear day) In Avignon, (the return of the fisherman) In Béziers (the goatherd) In Digne (at dawn; gray weather ; the banks of the Marolarie) In Draguignan (head of an old man; artist's studio, 1902)  Museum of Fine Arts of Béziers: La Chevrière  Museum of Grenoble: By the Fireside  Museum of Fine Arts of Marseille : The Fishermen's Lunch or La Régalade: in the center a standing fisherman, in clogs and convict stockings, wearing a Catalan beret, drinks from the regalade; on the left, a kneeling cabin boy blows on a small stove to stoke the fire while three other seated fishermen prepare to eat lunch. On the right a tartan with lowered sails is attached to the shore. The Frioul Islands stand out on the horizon. The Landing of the Wheat in Marseille: To create this painting Moutte rented a shop on the Rive-Neuve quay in order to better reproduce this scene. Corner of Prado beach: a fish carrier runs barefoot on the sand to deliver his catch. To create this painting, the artist is on this beach every morning to paint his picture.  Marseille Academy: Self-portrait  Maritime Museum (Marseille): Unloading of a brig in Marseille; The ports of Marseille (view from the Pharo gardens)  Fabre Museum, Montpellier: Catalan fishermen around Marseille.  Museum of Fine Arts of Nantes: The Song of the Whip 1895