The Seated Girl, Red Chalk Drawing Sketch by Major French Post Impressionist Georges D'espagnat (1870-1950)

A very delicate small drawing in red chalk by Georges d'Espagnat (1870-1950), a major figure of French post-impressionism, whose paintings are in the collections of the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, as well as in museums in Brussels, Madrid and Tokyp.

Georges d’Espagnat was born in Melun, a small town near Paris, in 1870. He was initially self-taught, copying exhibited artworks at the local museum. He moved to Paris as a young man in the late 1880s, where once again he would spend much of his time copying works so to get a better sense of composition, form and colour, this time at the Louvre.

He first submitted his work to the Salon des Arts Décoratifs and Salon des Refusés in 1891 where he exhibited for the first time. The following year he began exhibiting at the Salon des Indépendants, where his participation became regular.

In 1908 he took part in an important still-life exhibition at the Durand-Ruel Gallery in Paris with fellow painters Monet, Cézanne, Pissaro, Renoir and Sisley. He exhibited abroad, with a very successful show in St. Petersburg in 1912.

During his long career and posthumously, d'Espagnat had numerous exhibitions in Paris, many of them at the Galerie Durand-Ruel. He corresponded with many of the artists of his time, and among the many portraits he painted were those of Paul Valery, Maurice Ravel, Albert Andre, Ker-Xavier Roussel, Paul Signac and Paule Gobillard.

D'Espagnat died in his home on April 17, 1950, in Paris. A year later the Salon D’Automne honoured him with an exposition dedicated to his large body of work. The Durand-Ruel Gallery also honoured him shortly thereafter with a retrospective exhibit showing 51 of his works.(With credit to Callan Fine Arts for the artist's biography on their website).

Our drawing by Georges d'Espagnat measures 19 x 14 cm and is monogrammed at the lower

The overall framed size is 28 x 24 cm.

Nous parlons français, und wir sprechen auch Deutsch! Paintings may be viewed in Norwich and in Paris, as well as in London and Cambridge by appointment. Please contact us if you would like further details and images of an artwork.