Masterpiece: Lamb's Ear by Bloomsbury Group Artist Jean Hippolyte Marchand (1883–1941) Circa 1920 Floral Still Life with Artist's Palette Oil on Canvas

I love the understatement of this painting. Somebody else might have flaunted his artist's palette, whereas here, the artists almost hides it from sight. I like the -very French- packet of Gauloises on the table; and the choice of plant it given place of honour,. It is so common in gardens but rarely seen in vases: the sturdy, furry-leaved Lamb's Ear (Stachys byzantina), which in French, oddly enough, it is called Bear's Ear. 'Oreille d'Ours' is indeed the the painting.

Jean Hippolyte Marchand (1883-1941) is one of my favourite artists. i have bought (and sold) three oils and four works of paper by him over the last four years, and I am delighted to be able to present this major, painting by the artist. Dating from the 1920s, it is an elegant work of wonderful subtlety and complexity.

One of the leading artists of his generation. Jean Marchand became closely linked to the Bloomsbury Group. Born in 1883 of an old Parisian family that had never supposed one of its sons could become a painter, he found himself, aged eighteen, left to make his way in the world unaided. He entered the Ecole des Beaux Arts, and frequented the studios of Bonnat and Luc-Olivier Merson. He subsequently studied with Henri Martin. One of his comrades in the Ecole and the studios was Raoul Dufy.

Marchand exhibited at the Salon d'Automne, the Salon des Indépendants and the Section d'Or.

In 1910, his painting Still Life with Bananas was exhibited in the 1910 "Manet and Post-Impressionism" show organised by Roger Fry. It was also shown in 1912 in a second exhibition organised by Fry with Clive Bell at the Grafton Galleries in London. Crane Kalman Gallereries in London organised a major retrospective of the artist in 1967.

Paintings by Jean Marchand are in the collections of the Courtault, the Tate, and in numerous regional museums in the UK (Manchester, Gloucester, Cardiff etc.) and worldwide. The National Gallery of Ireland owns 5 oils by the artist.

Our oil on canvas measures 73 x 60 cm and it signed at the lower right. It is presented its hand carved Montparnasse frame, which bears an exhibition label on the verso. The overall framed size is 93 x 80 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.