"Elisée Maclet Boats In Port Watercolor And Gouache"
Watercolor and gouache on cardboard by Elisée Maclet, signed lower right, depicting boats in port, under mat, under glass, enhanced with a canvas marie-louise, in a carved wooden Montparnasse frame. Dimensions of the work, 35x49.5 cm Total dimensions, with frame, 61.5x76 cm Elisée Maclet, born April 12, 1881 in Lihons (Somme) and died in Paris on August 23, 1962. He was an abbot, Sunday painter , who taught him some basics of painting. In 1906, he left his native Picardy for the first time to go to Paris and especially Montmartre. Maclet will carry out a number of small jobs and will work as a decorator at the Moulin Rouge. He will be the first to paint Montmartre with techniques other than impressionism, inventing a style which will inspire other painters, marked by simplicity, and the appearance of colors in an expressionist way. Initially, he painted watercolors. Then, he moved on to the brush before picking up the knife around 1909. During this period, he remained in a limited range of colors, blue-gray, green and pink. After 1916, he developed color and finesse of forms. This period is considered to be when Maclet was at the height of his art. He then had many clients and exhibited in several Parisian galleries. Among his friends, we count Utrillo, Max Jacob, Pablo Picasso, Guillaume Apollinaire... In 1918, he discovered the sea and went to paint in Normandy, then in the South. Maclet's paintings are then adorned with the density and brilliance of enamel. His works express joy and he remained in the south of France from 1924 to 1928. At the end of 1928, he was in Corsica. Then in 1929-1930, he was in Brittany where his painting lost the colorful expression that the South inspired in him. After 1935, he painted Paris again. The paintings from this period are pleasant, with fresh and poetic colors. During the Second World War, in occupied Paris, Maclet symbolically painted the capital under the snow. Then it will be the subject of exhibitions in different Parisian galleries. Its rating continues to rise. He died in Paris on August 23, 1962. His posthumous recognition reflects his talent. Museums: United States - Detroit, Detroit Institute of Arts - Princeton, Princeton University Art Museum France - Granville, Richard-Anacreon Museum of Modern Art Paris: - Montmartre Museum. - national museum of modern art Channel Islands - Saint Peter Port, Victor Hugo Museum, Hauteville House Switzerland - Geneva, Petit Palais