Lucien Gros (1845-1913) - Around A Pardon - Watercolor On Paper

Trained in the studio of the painter Ernest Meissonier, Lucien Gros was admitted to the Salon from 1865, where his historical genre scenes were well received. However, the discovery of Brittany in the 1880s will lead him to abandon this production to turn to naturalistic representations, in which he endeavors to depict the daily life of Breton peasants and sailors. The artist does not forget his apprenticeship and continues to produce many preparatory studies for his paintings, drawing and watercolor. His ease in this medium also allowed him, from 1885, to exhibit to French watercolourists. This watercolor is one of the preparatory sketches for the painting Autour d'un Pardon which he presented in 1896 at the Salon of the National Society of Fine Arts and in 1900 at the Universal Exhibition. The scene depicts a moment of conviviality on the occasion of a pardon, a Breton pilgrimage during which men and women wear traditional costume. Other preparatory watercolors for this painting are known but this one, more accomplished, is, apart from a few variations in attitude, very close to the painted version presented by the artist to the public.