A Christmas Pear

 

A Christmas Pear - Watercolour by Benoit Philippe

I painted this small watercolour in one of my travel notebooks while in Paris for Christmas/

Weymouth beach, Dorset

Weymouth beach

A sketch I did on Weymouth beach (Dorset, England) at the end of September. This is a large sandy beach in the centre of Weymouth. Other beaches around generally have pebbles.

I started with a quick pencil outline, then painted with the waterclour. Only after applying the colour I used a black ink liner to give more definition.

An despite the water being at 16 degrees Celcius (61 Fahrenheit), it was nice to go for a swim in the sea at the end of summer.

 

L'Arc de Triomphe wrapped by Christo

This a temporary artwork for Paris, was on view for 16 days from September 18 to October 3, 2021. After Christo’s death, the rojet he had designed has been implemented by his team.

I remember many years ago when Christo has wrapped the Pont Neuf in Paris.

The Arc de Triomphe was wrapped in 25,000 square meters of recyclable polypropylene fabric in silvery blue, and with 3,000 meters of red rope.

They were distributing samples of the fabric used at the opening.

Back of the fabric.

The Golden Age of Danish Painting (1801-1864) Exhibition – Part I

 This exhibition features more than 200 works by the leading Danish artists of the period covered 1801-1864: Christoffer Eckersberg, Christen Købke, Martinus Rørbye and Constantin Hansen…

 

The exhibition is well put together and general notices on the different themes covered (the Art studio, landscape open-air painting, travel paintings, interiors, etc.) as well as for individual paintings are very detailed and interesting. The quality of the paintings is high.

Unfortunately, with the Covid 19 Lockdown, the museum is closed for the time being. Let’s hope that the exhibition will re-open before it ends.

 

Prometheus Molding Man from Clay – Oil on paper mounted on canvas by Constantin Hansen

 

The Life Class At the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhaguen – Oil on canvas (57,7x82,5 cm ) by Wilhelm Bendz Copenhague, Statens Museum for Kunst

A Little Girl, Elise Købke, with a Cup (1850). Oil on canvas (39 cm x35,5 cm) by Constantin Hansen Copenhagune, Statens Museum for Kunst

 

A View Through Three Arches on the Third Storey of the Colosseum (1815). Oil on canvas (32 cm x 49,5 cm) by Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg - Copenhaguen, Statens Museum for Kunst

 

Loggia, Procida (1835) - Oil on paper mounted on canvas (32 cm x 47,5 cm) by Martinus Rørbye, - Stockholm, Nationalmuseum

 

Fields of Oats Near Vejby (1843) – Oil painting (25,5 x 28,5 cm) by Peter Christian Skovgaard - Copenhaguen, Statens Museum for Kunst

 Fields of Oats Near Vejby is one of favourite paintings in the exhibition (Click on the photo to see a larger version). The notice for this painting explained that the Danish artists were interested in botanic and followed lectures by the director of the botanical garden. And this painting shows a precise observation of the different plants in this field.

Frederiksborg’s Castle Viewed from Jaegerbakken. Evening (1835) Oil painting on canvas (71,8 cm x 103,4 cm) by Christen Købke - Copenhaguen, Hirschsprung Museum

 

One of the Small Towers of  Frederiksborg’s Castle (around 1834-1835) -  Oil painting on canvas (177 cm x 162 cm) by Christen Købke - Copenhaguen, Designmuseum Danmark

One of the Small Towers of  Frederiksborg’s Castle (Detail)

 

Outside the North Gate of the Citadel (1834) - Oil painting on canvas (79 x 93 cm) by Christen Købke - Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek

Outside the North Gate of the Citadel (Detail)

 

The Exhibition

The Golden Age of Danish Painting (1801-1864)

Temporary Exhibition
22 September 2020 to 03 January 2021

Petit Palais
Avenue Winston Churchill 75008 Paris – France

Fontaine de l’Observatoire or Fontaine Carpeaux in Paris - France

 The Fontaine de l'Observatoire (also known as the Fontaine des Quatre-Parties-du-Monde, or simply the), is in the Jardin Marco Polo, in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was commissioned in 1867 and dedicated in 1874.

It is adorned with sculptures of female figures by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux representing the four parts of the world.

Some of the heads made in preparation for this project can be seen in Paris in the permanent collection of the Petit Palais museum.

 

The Chinese (1872) – Plaster patinated by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux

This is a male head that was made by Carpeaux and will be used as reference for the feminine figure representing Asia. Carpeaux used, as model, Chinese people who were travelling to Paris.

Pourquoi Naitre Esclave ? Why Born a Slave? – Plaster patinated by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux

Other statues also at the Petit Palais museum:

 

Ugolin et ses enfants / Ugolino – Plaster patinated by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux

The three graces – Patinated terracotta by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux

Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux was from the city of Valenciennes in the North of France and the Fine Art Museum there holds a large collection of Carpeaux’s works.

 

Related resources

Paris Fine Art Museum -Petit Palais 

Valenciennes Fine ArtMuseum

Antoine Watteau monument by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux in Valencienne