Holiday inspiration: fine art inspired by the French Riviera

July 12, 2022
Claude Venard, Bateaux

Presenting three Artists enchanted by the French Riviera: Claude Venard (above), who spent his latter years in Sanary-sur-Mer, was endlessly inspired by boats, ports, the sea, the colour, and ever-changing light of Southern ports. Neo-Pointillist, Yvonne Canu, like Paul Signac before her, immersed herself in the life of St. Tropez when it was a bustling working port. Similarly, Marius Hubert-Robert found enchantment in nearby Ramatuelle, with his depiction of the village on an early Summer's day. You can find these and many more paintings by 20th century French artists on our website.

 

 

Marius Hubert-Robert's paintings were purchased over the years both by prominent individuals such as Queen Mary, King Albert of Belgium, King Alfonso XIII of Spain and the French President Alexandre Millerand (1920-24) and by many public institutions.
 
Pictured: Ramatuelle, prés St. Tropez. Oil on canvas: 44 cm x 52 cm (framed size: 64 cm x 72 cm), signed.
 
 
Yvonne Canu (1921-2008) was born in Morocco in 1921. The greatest influence on her work were those of the Pointillistes, and in particular Georges Seurat's masterpiece L'île de la Grande Jatte. Her oil paintings follow this divisioniste technique of colour analysis employed by late 19th century artists, and like them she often depicts seascapes, harbours and river scenes.
 
Pictured: The Port of St. Tropez. Watercolour: 22 cm x 30 cm (framed size: 42 cm x 50 cm), signed.
 
 

Artist of the Month
Claude Grosperrin (1936-1977)

 

Claude Grosperrin was born in 1936 in Charenton, France. From the age of twenty he studied at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris under the artist Maurice Brianchon. Working from his studio in Montmartre, recognition came very quickly, winning two prestigious prizes - the Farman Prize in 1959, and the Casa Velázquez Prize in 1961. He also exhibited his paintings both in Paris and internationally. The Galeries Charpentier, Durand-Ruel, and Berthe Weill in Paris all gave him one man shows, as did the Van der Straten Gallery and Eric Gallery, both in New York.

 

Pictured: Nature Morte au Bouquet de Fleurs et au Violin, oil on canvas: 33 cm x 41 cm (framed size: 48 cm x 56 cm).

About the author

John Adams

Founded in 1990, John Adams Fine Art specialises in 20th century French art and modern and contemporary paintings and sculpture.John Adams Fine Art also represents the Estates of two exceptional French artists to emerge from the Post War period, Othello Radou (1910 - 2006) and Denise Mannoni (1918 - 2003).

View all posts by John Adams