René Pierre Charles Princeteau

R. and M. Schmit, René Princeteau (1843-1914), Chevaux et cavaliers ; Catalogue raisonné, Paris 1994, illustrated p. 114, no. 171.

Born into a family of wealthy notables, Princeteaudescribed with elegance and truth the high life of the social and aristocratic circles, especially the equestrian scenes of hunting, walks and races. It is probably in his studio located at 233 rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré, next to those of Jean-Louis Forain and Edmond Petitjean, that Princeteau produced this Bien-Aller, representative of his work. He distinguishes himself from his fellow animal painters such as Edmond Grandjean, Jean-Richard Goubie or Georges Busson, alongside whom he exhibited at the Exposition Universelle in 1878. In fact, by his technique, he is closer to his workshop neighbors who were in favor of a revival of painting.

It is probably this originality that encouraged Robert and Manuel Schmit to work on the catalog raisonné of this artist's work. In this spectacular painting, one can find all the singularity of Princeteau's pictorial technique. This masterful composition, in which we see that Princeteau assimilated the precise drawing and technique of the academic painters but also the clear colours of a certain form of impressionism, allows us to understand the modernity of Princeteau's work.