Roses in an Ethnic Vase, 1888: Art Nouveau Period Bohemian Still Life by Woman Artist, French Oil on Canvas

Women artists are a speciality of my gallery. Under-researched - with often even the most basic biographical information absent - and undervalued compared to their male peers, their works are often a revelation.

My most recent discovery is Marie-Rose Vasselon (b. 1859). I love her choice of colours - the dusky cerulean blue matched with velvety pink and a surprising light yellow - and, most of all, the juxtaposition of the sophistication of the bouquet with the bohemianism of the ethnic pot! The vase is a traditional Berber one, stemming from the Moroccan Atlas mountains.

Marie-Rose Vasselon exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français, and her work was showcased at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1900. Interestingly, it appears that she also spent time in London.

Very little else is known about here, and so I was delighted to find her mentioned in the modestly titled volume "Famous pictures by The World’s Greatest Artists Selected from the Best and Most Noted Art Galleries of France, England, Italy, The United States and Many Other Countries" (CHICAGO, Stanton VanVliet Publishers, 1917). I quote:

"Marie Rose Vasselon, who was born at Craponne in the Department of

the Upper Loire, exhibited in earliest childhood a most astonishing artistic talent.

She seemed to learn to draw by instinct, for she had enjoyed no instruction apart

from that which was afforded by t'he pictures and engravings in her home. A

Madame Thoret, a very able woman painter of the time, gave her her first actual

•instruction in art. She then went to Paris, where, while studying in the art school,

she also became a student under Carolus Duran and Henner. (...)

Miss Vasselon shows in her pictures a wonderfully fine appreciation of

color, and great accuracy and skill in drawing. Her technique is big, broad and

free, and her execution perfect."

Our oil on canvas by Marie Vasselon measures 41 x 33 cm and is signed and dated Janvier (January) 1888 at the lower right. The canvas bears the stamp of Paris colour merchant Paul Foinet Paul Foinet (1834-1910), who was nicknamed Van Eyck because it appears that he resembled the Dutch master!

In its original silver leaf frame (which is a little warped and tarnished), the overall size is 47 x 39 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.