Artist: Eugenie Marie SALANSON, French School c. 1875 Frame is original, included with the painting, which is oil on stretched canvas Eugenie Marie Salanson (1836 - 1912) was a French painter. She was born in Albert, Somme and became a pupil of Leon Cogniet and William Bouguereau at the Acadamie Julian. She exhibited works at the Acadamie des Beaux-Arts from 1864 and the Paris Salon from 1877. Her 1890 painting At Low Tide, was included in the 1905 book Women Painters of the World. I find reference to her paintings sold in the ranges between $12,000 - $60,000 through various action houses. Her work is in numerous museum collections, as well. The sidelong 3/4 seated pose is perfectly designed to bring the eye throughout the painting and to elicit the sympathetic feeling we have for this beautiful widow in her early Victorian Era mourning clothing (Restoration to early Napoleon III era in France, it's country of origin). The interior view adds to the interest and calm and helps to elevate it to something more than fine portraiture. She's become a personal favorite in my home, displayed on our walls even now. The rather rare painting by a female artist, the sensitivity of the emotion is self-evident in this artist's capture. We do not have the ID of the sitter. The information we have on the artist is that she is listed and her birth and death dates: 1864-1892. Perhaps with your own research you can find the name of this beautiful woman, too, as well as more about the artist.
The frame is original and has suffered some loss over time and has had restoration work that is quite well done, pleasing to the eye. The outer frame measurement is 59.2 cm x 51 cm, and the canvas is 44.7 cm x 36. 3 cm (measurement noted in inches directly on our photos. Please refer to those if you need in inches. The stretched canvas has survived very well. There are no tears or holes though you can see from the back side of the canvas, there might have been a bit of very old restoration done at some point. She shows exceptionally well, both in condition and design. Sure to become a favorite in your collection, too, as she is in mine.
