Pierre Labrouche (1876-1956) “washhouses At Night In The Fog Without Moon” Oil On Canvas

The painting “Lavoirs la nuit dans le brume sans lune” is an oil on canvas measuring 58 x 60 cm, attributed to Pierre Labrouche (1876-1956) although it is not signed. However, the studio stamp visible on the back reinforces this attribution. The work presents a foggy nocturnal scene of wash houses, without the natural lighting of the moon. The dark colours and the thick texture of the brushstrokes recall a heavy, almost mysterious atmosphere. The water seems to reflect some diffuse glows, and the whole evokes an impressionist or post-impressionist vision, playing on the effects of material and light to create an almost ghostly atmosphere. Pierre Labrouche (1876-1956) Labrouche is a relatively discreet French painter born in BAYONNE, whose production is little documented but who seems to have worked in a style influenced by late impressionism and expressionism. His works, often marked by landscape scenes or urban atmospheres, play on dark palettes and a thick touch, sometimes close to the techniques of Maurice de Vlaminck or Eugène Boudin in some of his atmospheric seascapes. This painting is a good example of his mastery of nocturnal atmospheres and the use of fog to soften the shapes, thus creating an almost dreamlike effect. Its absence of signature but the presence of the studio stamp indicate that this is a painting that remained in his studio after his death or intended for an unfinished exhibition. Total dimension with frame 68 x 66 cm wooden frame.