AUGUSTE BOUVARD | Venetian Reflections
Oil on Canvas
61 x 89 cms / 24 x 35 inches
Signed 'Bouvard' (lower left)
This atmospheric canal scene exemplifies the Venetian works for which Auguste Bouvard is best known, presenting the city as a place shaped by light, water and architectural continuity. The composition draws the eye along the canal’s receding line, where a solitary gondolier moves across the reflective surface, anchoring the scene within the everyday life of Venice rather than its ceremonial grandeur. Tall façades rise directly from the water’s edge, their timeworn surfaces catching the warm glow of late-day light, while deeper shadows gather beneath eaves, balconies and moored boats.
Auguste Bouvard's love affair with Venice was instant and enduring. Inspired by the outstanding beauty of the city, his impressionist, warm, colourful and confident landscapes capture its unique atmosphere and charm.
Widely collected and comprehensively acknowledged as one of the finest Venetian painters ever, comparisons are often drawn with Canaletto, Guardi and Ziem, however many prefer Bouvards style. On his visits to Venice, Rubens Santoro was to become a close friend and mentor.
In his early years, Bouvard honed his talents under Constant-Dufeus at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and drawing inspiration from the popular impressionist movement of the time, he developed his appealing style.
In 1928, Gladwell Patterson, the acknowledged experts of his art, held the first one-man exhibition of Bouvards work in Britain, from which the late Queen Mary purchased two paintings.
- Free shipping for artworks above £5,000 in the UK. For International customers please contact us for a shipping quote.
