Jacques Berland (1918-1999), Portrait Of A Woman, Circa 1950, Oil On Canvas

Jacques Berland (1918-1999)
Portrait of a woman, circa 1950
Oil on canvas
34 × 25 cm

A figurative painter from the Paris school, Jacques Berland's work was brought back to light thanks to the exhibition organized in 2005 at the Saint-Jean museum-château in Nogent-le-Rotrou. Originally from Eure-et-Loir, Jacques Berland was born in Pré-Saint-Evroult in 1918 to farming parents. He graduated from the Châteaudun agricultural school and initially considered taking over the family farm. The Second World War would decide otherwise. He was taken prisoner in Germany on June 17, 1940, where he remained until 1945. During these five long years of captivity, he drew, painted, learned several languages and deepened his knowledge of art history and literature. His war godmother, Marie Laurencin, strongly encouraged him to enroll in the fine arts.

He joined the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1946 in the studio of Jean Souverbie (1891-1981). He also took classes at the École du Louvre from 1949 before traveling to Italy thanks to a scholarship. In 1953, Jacques Berland became a boarder at the Casa Velazquez in Madrid where he studied for two years before returning to Paris and exhibiting at the famous Charpentier gallery in 1955-1956 (Discover Exhibition) alongside Jean Bazaine, Bernard Buffet, Nicolas de Staël and Kees van Dongen.

His extensive knowledge of art history allowed him to become a lecturer on national monuments in 1962, with a predilection for the Louvre Museum. He gave up painting the same year, when he was only 44 years old, despite his remarkable talent and critical acclaim.

His painted work, which mainly includes still lifes, portraits and landscapes, demonstrates a solid line, a firm touch and a palette restricted to the essentials. The very expressive portrait we are presenting shows a female model with large, clear eyes, depicted in three-quarter view.