Adolphe Aze (1823-1884) Church Square In The Renaissance

Adolphe AZE
(Paris, 1823 – Paris, 1884)
Church Parvis in the Renaissance
Oil on panel
H. 49 cm; W. 37 cm
Signed lower right and dated 1853

French painter, Adolphe Aze first trained with Robert-Fleury then by traveling in Italy and the Orient (1842-1844). His entire production is deeply marked by these landscapes which made him an artist widely recognized for his orientalist painting. Back in France, he regularly exhibited in the Salons subjects close to those of Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps or Eugène Delacroix like that of 1848 where Aze presents the Merchants of Constantinople.

Our work, untitled is certainly a scene from History, representing an exit from church, where a woman gives alms to beggars. This scene seems to take place at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries, judging by the cladding. Is the church with its flamboyant Gothic porch made of limestone or granite? It is difficult to tell given the shade used by the painter. This detail would have allowed us to try to situate this scene. An important detail is that all the niches on the façade that normally contain its sculptures are empty. This is certainly an anachronism due to the date of creation of the work and the devastating impact of the Revolution...