Jean-François Raffaëlli

Collection of Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, San Francisco

Thence by descent

Private Collection, Texas

Arsène Alexandre, Jean-François Raffaëlli: Peintre Graveur et Sculpteur, Paris, 1909, illustrated p. 147 

The following condition report was kindly provided by Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc.: This painting is in lovely condition. It is painted on paper which was mounted onto canvas, perhaps by the artist himself, since the paper tape around the edges seems to bear original paint in the leaves of the trees in the upper left. The paint layer is cleaned and very lightly varnished. There are essentially no retouches to the picture and it may be that the recent cleaning was the first time that the picture was cleaned. The condition is beautiful. The warm tone to the trees and to a few patches in the ground in the lower part of the picture is the color of the paper on which the painting is painted.
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Just as Raffaëlli was obsessed with documenting the character of his figural subjects, as outlined in his treaty on caractérisme, in the bustling scene of the present lot he is compelled by the spirit of Les Champs-Élysées. He produced countless street scenes while he lived in Paris and many of them, and possibly this one, were exhibited at the Paris Salon between 1870 and 1909. Each is painted with verve and finesse – a showcase for his confident brushwork and sophisticated palette, both of which are economical here and emphasized by his spare use of paint. Raffaëlli's studio habits were very much his own and the present work is on paper laid down on canvas, a support that he would have had prepared specifically for spontaneous works such as this. When working in oils, the smooth surface of paper allows for greater speed and flexibility in mark-making: brush strokes can be fast, applied wet or dry, as a wash or in thick impasto. In comparison to the drag of the weave of canvas, paper is supple and lithe and Raffaëlli takes full advantage of it. His wet and sinuous shadows, scumbled foliage with fully articulated dappled leaves, impasto figures in the foreground contrasted with the ghostly and gestural figures that fade into the distance, all demonstrate his willingness to experiment and virtuosity with his materials. Further, he boldly allows for bare paper to remain exposed throughout the whole of the picture, a strategy that unifies the composition and brings so many disparate elements into harmony.

Les Champs-Élysées was at one time owned by Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, affectionately referred to as "Big Alma". A San Francisco socialite and philanthropist who stood six feet tall, Big Alma was a visible presence who was also considered a hugely influential art collector in America. In the early twentieth century, she spent a significant amount of time in Paris and amassed an impressive collection. She was a friend and patron to Auguste Rodin and bought many works directly from him to bring back to San Francisco where she would eventually found the California Palace of the Legion of Honor. It was in Paris where she likely acquired this painting and it has been in her family's collection until recently.

There is no shortage of elements that may have attracted Alma de Bretteville Spreckels to this painting. It is extremely sophisticated in its organization, and while the proximity to Raffaëlli of Degas and other Impressionists is evident, the handling most closely resembles the later works of Camille Pissarro. The fashionable figures, brilliant coloration, attention to detail and the subtle narrative implied through a point of contact where the young girl faces the viewer all contribute to a fabulously dynamic composition.