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PIERRE-ANTOINE DEMACHY (PARIS 1723-1807)
Les vendeurs d'estampes au Louvre
signé '[D]EMACHY' (en bas, vers la gauche)
huile sur panneau
39,8 x 49,6 cm. (15 2/3 x 19 1/2 in.)
Provenance
Collection de la Banque Demachy-Worms, Paris.
Vente anonyme, hôtel George V, Paris, 9 avril 1990, lot 108.
Vente anonyme, Sotheby's, Londres, 9 juillet 1998, lot 380.
Literature
M. Petkowska Le Roux, F. Roussel-Leriche, Le témoin méconnu. Pierre-Antoine Demachy 1723-1807, Paris, 2016, p. 106, sous le n°18, reproduit en couleurs p. 107, fig. 31.
Special notice
This lot is offered without reserve.
These lots have been imported from outside the EU for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime.
Import VAT is payable at 5,5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately
on our invoice.
Post lot text
PIERRE-ANTOINE DEMACHY, PRINT SELLERS AT THE LOUVRE, SIGNED, OIL ON PANEL
If, under the superintendence of the Marquis de Marigny (1727-1781), the Louvre was a subject of urban reflection, at the end of the Enlightenment it became the kaleidoscope of a society reflecting on its own values. The arches on the east side that lead to the Cour Carrée were home to numerous merchants' stalls, most of which were modest second-hand dealers of prints, books and even a few paintings.
Two versions of the subject are known: the present painting, which was once the property of the Demachy-Worms Bank, and another belonging to the Carnavalet Museum (Paris, inv. no. P1039). The latter, signed and dated 1791, has been in the Louvre since 1989 and may have been sent to the Salon of 1793. The present painting predates the one in the museum by about ten years and is by far the most successful. Should we see the poor quality of the post-revolutionary panel as the autograph work of an ageing artist or as a collaboration with Louise-Victoire Demachy, the artist's daughter?
Although the effect of light is identical in both versions, some differences in the organisation of the space and staffage can be seen. The comparison of the two panels allows us to understand the evolution of society, and these works remain an interesting testimony to one of the forms of activity of the 18th century Parisian art market.
It is also interesting to compare our panel with the watercolour belonging to the musée Carnavalet, Le Péristyle du Louvre, côté est (Paris, inv. no. D. 514). This is not strictly speaking the preparatory drawing for the painting since the point of view is different, but there are some common elements such as the effect of light, the shelf with books on the left and the flower girl on the right of the composition. This sheet may be contemporary with the present work.
It should be noted that this practice of repetition, which was widespread among the Vedutists, was criticised by the Salon critics when it became characteristic of the painters of landscapes, ruins and architecture. Demachy's works reflect the expectations of his clientele, who wished for their depictions of Paris to reflect current events. Through this work, "the status of Paris as a cultural capital … is asserted and staged" according to Charlotte Guichard, who notes that our painting admirably illustrates "the atmosphere of the art market" (in M. Petkowska Le Roux, F. Roussel-Leriche, op. cit., p.46).
We would like to thank Ms. Petkowska Le Roux for writing the above notice.