Alfred Smith

Gounouilhou Collection, Paris (by 1886)
Sale: Sotheby's, New York, April 23, 2010, lot 84, illustrated
Acquired at the above sale

Paris, Salon, 1886, no. 2211

Louis Ennault, Paris Salon 1886, Paris, 1886, p. 69-70, illustrated p. 68
Judith Gautier, "Le Salon," Le Rappel, no. 5895, May 4, 1886
La Revue Normande et Parisienne, no. 5, May 1886, p. 138
René Tessier, "Le Salon," La Décade correspondance, note et chronique de dix jours, no. 16, June 1, 1886, p. 499
Gustave Geffroy, "Salon de 1886," La Justice, no. 2343, June 14, 1886, p. 2
Louis Ganderax, "Délégué au Salon," Les Lettres et les Arts: Revue Illustrée, vol. 1, no. 2, 1886, p. 350
René Tessier, "Le Salon," La Décade correspondance, note et chronique de dix jours, no. 16, June 1, 1886
A-J. Boyer D'Agen, "Le Salon et l'atelier en 1886," Revue Internationale, vol. XI, 1886, p. 229
Alfred Smith: Un regard sur la vie moderne, exh. cat., Muśee des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux, 2007, pp. 60, 102, 156

Lined. Vertical and horizontal stretcher bar marks visible. Repaired tears visible in upper right and upper left corners, and possibly also to a break in the lower right corner. Under UV: three by four inch area of inpainting in upper left corner and ten by six inch area of inpainting in upper right corner to address aforementioned repaired tears. Areas of inpainting in the architecture and the foreground, including one four inch area in lower right corner to address aforementioned break. Additional lines of inpainting to address visible stretcher bar marks and lines and strokes of inpainting scattered elsewhere.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Born in Bordeaux to English parents, Alfred Smith first exhibited his work at the 1876 Salon in his hometown before moving to Paris four years later, where he trained in the studios of Hippolyte Pradelle, Léonce Chabry and Amadeus Baudit. He exhibited at the Paris Salon from 1880 on, and was awarded honors and medals for his atmospheric contributions, including the present work.  Dated 1885, Après l'averse holds all the elements for which Smith's paintings were celebrated: complex, detailed scenes of urban life married to a brilliant depiction of the natural world, the result of his extensive training as a landscape painter. The work shows the influence of his friend and mentor Louis-Augustin Auguin, his teachers, and the Barbizon work of Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot.  Smith paints the clearing gray skies and pooling water of Après l'averse in a delicate, luminous style close to Impressionism, while the careful observation of people bustling about their day reveals his naturalistic sensibilities. The success of this rainy urban landscape work foreshadows L’Averse (Place de la Concorde) (1888, Musée des beaux-arts, Pau), and together these works demonstrate Smith’s quest to record the world around him and the evolution of his eclectic, highly personal style that continued to evolve throughout his long career.