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NOËL-DIEUDONNÉ FINART

UNIFORMS OF A HUSSAR, CUIRASSIER AND DRAGOON

NOËL-DIEUDONNÉ FINART
Conde 1797 – 1852 Paris
Watercolor on paper, signed " Finart 1815"
22.5 x 31 cm / 8.9 x 12.2 inches, 48 x 56 cm / 18.9 x 22 inches

The history of an artwork’s ownership can sometimes unfold like a fascinating story. Such is the case with this watercolor: a single reference in the 1986 Christie’s catalogue unexpectedly shed light not only on its provenance but also on the early stages of its existence. For a long time I regarded this work and its “pair” as a self-contained ensemble of two sheets. Yet the RKD database, which reproduces the watercolors now in my gallery, clarified the matter. One of the published scans revealed that the set was not conceived as a pair, but as a series of three large independent compositions. Over time, one was lost, and only two have survived to this day.
Even more compelling was the provenance information: the series originated in the collection of Charles, and later Ignace Ephrussi, dispersed at Galerie Charpentier. The name of Charles Ephrussi (1849–1905) is inseparable from the cultural history of nineteenth-century Europe. Born in Odessa and a member of the famous Jewish dynasty known as the “wheat kings,” he became in Paris a distinguished collector, art historian, and editor of the Gazette des Beaux-Arts. His collection, which combined Old Master paintings, Japanese art, and modern works, remains to this day a symbol of refined cosmopolitan taste. It is especially telling that such a connoisseur and patron of the Impressionists turned his attention to Finart’s watercolors, recognizing in them both artistic and historical value.
The author of these works, Noël-Dieudonné Finart (1787, Condé – 1852, Paris), was a French painter and watercolorist best known for military and genre scenes. Self-taught, he developed his skills by close observation of nature and the study of the Old Masters. From 1817 to 1850 he regularly exhibited at the Paris Salon, presenting landscapes, battle scenes, and everyday subjects; in 1840 he was awarded a third-class medal. His watercolors combine documentary precision with a lyrical quality, making them not only works of art but also rare testimonies to the military aesthetics of their time.

PROVENANCE
Collection Charles Ephrussi (1849–1905), Paris
Ignace Ephrussi, Paris, vente Galerie Charpentier
Christie's, London, Continental Drawings of the 19th and 20th Centuries, 19 June 1986, lot 43
Bonhams, London, Fine British and Continental Watercolours and Drawings, 17 November 1999, lot 151;
Christie's, London, Christie's Interiors, 12 Aprile 2011, lot 240

Epoque: XIX century

Genre: Genre painting

Genre: History painting

School: French

Base: Paper

Technic: Watercolor