ACHILLE LAUGÉ | Route aux amandiers en fleur près de Cailhau (Aude)

Private Collection, France (sale: Sotheby's, London, 6th February 2008, lot 448)
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner

The canvas is not lined. Inspection under UV light reveals areas of retouching to the composition, predominantly in the trees and the sky at the proper right of the road. There are spots of retouching in the blossom of the tree at the proper left of the composition and to all four edges. There are two areas of discoloured varnish in the upper right of the composition and a further vertical line of discoloured varnish to the lower centre. There are fine and stable lines of craquelure to the sky most notably to the left of the composition. There are minor losses to the pigment in all four edges, consistent with frame abrasion. There is a lovely impasto and the colours are fresh and vibrant, overall this work is in overall fairly good condition.
"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."

'Laugé’s art is one of great sensitivity and controlled reason; he is a master of light'
(Émile-Antoine Bourdelle quoted in ‘Le peintre Achille Laugé’ in Comœdia, p. 3, Paris, 23 June 1927).


Achille Laugé first developed his distinctive Neo-Impressionist style in Paris in the 1880s, where he attended the last exhibition of the Impressionists and was instantly taken by Georges Seurat’s masterpiece, Un dimanche après-midi à l'Île de la Grande Jatte, now in the Art Institute of Chicago. However, whereas Seurat painted scenes in and around the bustling metropolis, Laugé revelled in the pointillist technique’s scientific and systematic ability to capture the ephemeral flickers of light across the southern landscape. Laugé returned to the south of France after Paris, ultimately residing in Cailhau, near the road from Limoux to Alete-les-Bains where the present work was painted. Here, he translated Seurat’s scientific approach into a freer visual language, one that reflects the immediacy of the sensory landscape. Alternating dabs of rich colour infuse the scene with a sense of dynamism, while longer, impasto brushstrokes provide a newfound sense of structure, typical of the Neo-Impressionist sensibility.



This work will be included in the forthcoming Achille Laugé Catalogue raisonné being prepared by Nicole Tamburini.