Adolphe Appian (lyon, 1818 - Id., 1898) - The Little Train

Adolphe Appian took classes with François Grobon and Augustin Thierriat at the École des Beaux-arts in Lyon and exhibited for the first time at the Paris Salon in 1835. He then exhibited in Lyon in 1847, then in Paris in 1855. Subsequently, he exhibited regularly at the two Salons and received a gold medal in Paris in 1868. He participated in the Universal Exhibition in London in 1862 and received an honorable mention at the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1889. He was made a Knight of the Legion of Honor in 1892. One of his major works is the large decorative panel entitled Rives de l'Ain, which he painted for the staircase of the Rhône prefecture building in Lyon. Adolphe Appian was also a musician, but he chose to devote himself exclusively to the visual arts in 1852, the year he met Corot and Daubigny, both of whom would have a major influence. Appian spent considerable time at Fontainebleau, where he worked with other painters of the Barbizon School. He works a lot with charcoal, showing a marked preference for backlit subjects and the juxtaposition of light and shadow. His palette brightened noticeably when he discovered the light of the Mediterranean, his colors became fresher and he worked with an increasingly skillful touch, betraying the influence of his friend Ziem.