Frédéric Bazille

Family of the artist
André Bazille, Montpellier
Mme Rachou-Bazille, Montpellier
Private Collection
Acquired from the above by the present owner in February 1989

 

Paris, Association des Etudiants Protestants, 1935, no. 7, illustrated in the catalogue
Montpellier, Musée Fabre, Centenaire de Bazille, 1941, no. 26
Paris, Galerie Wildenstein, 1950, no. 29
Montpellier, Musée Fabre, 1959, no. 18
Nice, Galerie des Ponchettes, Le Second Empire, 1960, no. 103
Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago, Frédéric Bazille and Early Impressionism, 1978, no. 48, illustrated in the catalogue 
Brooklyn, The Brooklyn Museum & Memphis, Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Frédéric Bazille: Prophet of Impressionism, 1992-93,  no. 17

Gaston Poulain, Bazille et ses amis, Paris, 1932, no. 30
François Daulte, Frédéric Bazille et son temps, Geneva, 1952, no. 40, illustrated n.p.
François Daulte, Frédéric Bazille et les débuts de l'impressionnisme. Catalogue raisonné de l'œuvre peint, Paris, 1992, no. 44, illustrated pp. 144 & 172 (as dating from 1868)
Michel Schulman, Frédéric Bazille 1841-1870, Catalogue raisonné, Peintures, dessins, pastels, aquarelles, Paris, 1995, no. 42, illustrated p. 175 

The canvas is lined. There are three spots of retouching above the figure's head, the largest being 2cm. sq., and an area of intermittent lines of retouching to cover craquelure in her hair. There are several scattered nailhead-sized spots of retouching to the left of the figure's face, and some further spots, mainly to the top left edge. There are also intermittent spots of retouching down the right edge. All retouching is visible under UV light. Apart from intermittent nailhead-sized spots of retouching towards the centre of the bottom edge, this work is in fairly good condition.
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The enigmatic Jeune Femme aux Yeux Baissés was painted circa 1868, whilst Bazille was sharing a small artist's studio in rue Visconti with Renoir. There was a real intimacy at this time between the artists, who both painted portraits of one another in 1866 (fig. 1). A letter home to his parents records the arrival of his fellow artist; "I've extended my hospitality to one of my friends, a former student of Gleyre's, who lacks a studio at the moment. Renoir, that's his name, is a real worker, he takes advantage of my models and helps me pay for them" (quoted in Frédéric Bazille, Prophet of Impressionism (exhibition catalogue), Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn & Dixon Gallery, Memphis, 1992-93,  p. 38). This work illustrates this cooperative relationship in practice, as the young model bears a distinct similarity to Renoir's Diana (Fig 2.), which was painted during the same period.

In the work itself, Bazille focuses his attention on the play of light on the face, bust and dress of the young woman. The awkward simplicity in the posture of the woman is clearly reminiscent of Manet, the artist to whom the young painter was most often compared.  Both artists sort to refresh the painting of the past, and this work blends academic techniques with modern tonal harmonies in a way that prefigures later developments in Impressionism.  

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Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Bazille au chevalet, 1867, oil on canvas, Musée d'Orsay, Paris

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Fig. 2, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Diana Chasseresse, 1867, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Art, Washington