The Artist's Wife Fishing, 1896

Not on View

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

overall: 95.5 x 101 cm (37 5/8 x 39 3/4 in.)

framed: 121 x 126.1 x 7 cm (47 5/8 x 49 5/8 x 2 3/4 in.)

Credit Line

Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon

Accession Number

1985.64.19

Artists / Makers

Jean-Louis Forain (artist) French, 1852 - 1931

Image Use

This image is in the public domain.
Read our full Open Access policy for images .

Inscription

lower left: J.L. forain

Provenance

Mme. Forain [née Jeanne Bosc, 1865-1954]. Armand François Paul des Friches, comte Doria [1824-1896], Château d'Orrouy.[1] (Arthur Tooth and Sons, London); sold 10 December 1965 to Mr. Paul Mellon, Upperville, VA;[2] gift 1985 to NGA.

[1] The names of Mme. Forain and comte Doria are given in the Mellon collection records, in NGA curatorial files. However, it is not certain this information is correct. If the painting was executed in 1896, and owned by comte Doria, it would have to have been completed prior to May 7 of that year, when the comte died. The painting was not included in the posthumous sale of his collection held at Galerie Georges Petit in Paris in May 1899.

[2] According to Paul Mellon records in NGA curatorial files, this painting was exhibited at the Galerie Pigalle in Paris in 1931, presumably at the Forain exhibition held December 1931 to January 1932.

Associated Names

Doria, Armand-François-Paul des Frisches, comte
Mellon, Paul
Tooth & Sons, Ltd., Arthur

Exhibition History

1966: French Paintings from the Collections of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon and Mrs. Mellon Bruce, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1966, no. 128, repro

2011: Jean-Louis Forain (1852 - 1931): La Comédie parisienne, Musée du Petit Palais, Paris; The Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis, 2011, no. 75 (French catalogue); pl. 81 (English catalogue), repros.

2013: Eblouissants reflets: cent chefs-d'oeuvre impressionistes, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen, 2013, no. 57, repro.

Exhibition History Notes

[1] According to Paul Mellon records in NGA curatorial files, this painting was exhibited at the Galerie Pigalle in Paris in 1931, presumably at the Forain exhibition held December 1931 to January 1932.

Bibliography

1969: Wasell, Nancy Michelle. Jean Louis Forain, the Painter. M.A. Thesis, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1969:37, repro.

2001: Southgate, M. Therese. The Art of JAMA II: Covers and Essays from The Journal of the American Medical Association. Chicago, 2001: 12-13, color repro.