The Flower Seller at Windsor by Francois Flameng
The Flower Seller at Windsor by Francois Flameng
Francois Flameng was a French painter who lived and worked between the 19th and 20th centuries. He had an incredibly varied and masterful repertoire, from portraits to bustling historic scenes to vivid depictions of war. He was a friend of John Singer Sargent, who painted his portrait alongside Paul Helleu.
DIMENSIONS: (unframed) 25 x 32 ins/ 63.5 x 81.3 cm
SIGNATURE: Signed lower right
MEDIUM: Oil on panel
Price: £POA.
Description
The Flower Seller at Windsor showcases Flameng’s use of perspective and light; the pink hues in the castle turret and the rising line of shadow against the cityscape set the time of day as early evening. The foreground, in contrast to the tranquillity, is a noisier scene of socialites strolling along the opposite side of the River Thames.
Provenance
Private Collection, California, USA
Biography
Flameng was born in Paris in 1856, and went on to have many successes in his artistic career. He was trained as an engraver by his father, who was celebrated for this craft. Flameng turned to painting, and became a renowned history and portrait painter as well as a professor at the Academy of Fine Arts. He was awarded France’s highest civilian honour, the Legion d’Honneur, and subsequently designed France’s first bank notes. He received commissions in Paris, London, and New York – and notably commissioned for a portrait of Queen Alexandra. Later, Francois Flameng would receive esteem for his World War I painting and become a documenter for the War Ministry – in addition to honorary president of the Society of Military Painters. Critics at the time commented that his depictions of war were too realistic, rather than emphasising the tradition of dramatic, romanticised heroism. Many of his war paintings went on to be donated to the Musee de l’Armee in 1920.