catalog text
BARBIZON LANDSCAPE OIL PAINTING "HEADING TO PASTURE"
Oil on canvas, signed lower right "Franz Debeul"
Item # 906KPD22L
A simply exquisite Barbizon period painting, this scene captures a shepherd as he takes his flock out to pasture for the day. The sun is still early in the sky as they move as a group from the dry grasses of the scene towards other land. There is a softness to the handling of the scene, in part by the muted palette with low saturation and gray overtones, but also in the gentle brush strokes which bleed colors and blur individual details until each element takes on influence from its surroundings. The light is particularly effective, bringing the sheep to the forefront. Executed in oil on canvas, the work is housed in an early giltwood frame.
Measurements: 19 1/4" H x 23" W x 3" D [frame]; 12 3/4" H x 17 3/8" W [canvas]
Condition Report:
Early frame with significant losses - we can have a quote put together to have this restored upon request. Surface in overall very good condition, but would benefit eventually from being cleaned. Light surface craquelure throughout. Under UV examination: repaired small L-shaped tear and the upper right corner with associated inpainting, horizontal line of touch up to the right of this and a few smaller spots of touch up; flaring around the signature, thinness of ground paint and pigment flare suggest the signature was perhaps later added.