Louis-Léopold Boilly

Sale, Paris, Hôtel Drouot, 22 March 1995, lot 13;
sale, Paris, Hôtel Drouot, 22 March 2004, lot 47;
Private Collection, France

H. Harrisse, Louis Boilly, Peintre, Dessinateur et Lithographe (1761-1845), Paris 1898, p. 180, under no. 1130;
A. Scottez de Wambrechies, Boilly, exhib. cat., Lille, Musée des Beaux-Arts, 2011, p. 221, under no. 149

Window mounted. The sheet has very slightly discoloured. Otherwise in good condition with the medium fresh throughout.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

By 1832 Boilly was 71 years of age and had already lived through seven different governments, all of which saw severe censorship, particularly that of the press, as being of the utmost importance to their public image and control of power.  It was not until the July Monarchy, when the liberal Louis Philippe I came to power, that the press could finally print its ideas freely, without fear of reprisals or any other negative repercussions.  It was in this new vision of France that Boilly executed his painting Les Politiques au Jardin Tuileries (fig. 1), now in St. Petersburg,¹ in which fourteen elderly, bourgeois gentlemen sit in the gardens of the Tuileries, listening intently - and more importantly, freely - to the news being read out in this most public of places, in the heart of Paris.  It is for this central group of men that the present work is a preliminary study, the only significant difference in composition being the absence of the two standing figures that feature to the right of the main group in the final painting.  With his characteristic skill, Boilly captures the individual facial expressions of each man as they react to the news, a wonderful example of what made him not only one of the most celebrated artists of his day but also an enormously important chronicler of daily life during this fascinating period of French history.

1. St. Petersburg, State Hermitage Museum, inv. no. GE 3524