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Lot Essay
Selon la propre terminologie artistique de Félix Vallotton, il s'agit ici d'un 'paysage composé'. Le tableau a été réalisé à l'aide d'une méthode de travail que l'artiste a commencé à développer au début du XXe siècle et qu'il a appliquée, à quelques exceptions près, à l'ensemble de son œuvre paysagère à partir de 1909. À partir de cette date, il ne peignit plus ses paysages en plein air mais dans son atelier parisien - ou bien dans l'atelier de Honfleur, qu'il avait fait aménager dans une annexe de la 'Villa Beaulieu', sa résidence d'été. Le motif, très semblable à celui dépeint dans Vue d’Honfleur, matin d’été, 1910, donne à penser qu’est représenté ici le même endroit de la Côte de Grâce. Les sentiments de calme et de magnificence tranquille véhiculés par le présent tableau et les autres de cette série normande, sont communiqués par une composition remarquablement réfléchie typique de l'œuvre de Vallotton de cette période, dans laquelle chaque élément naturel de la scène se fait écho dans une délicate symphonie de contrastes. Comme souvent chez Vallotton, le tableau est construit en bandes parallèles, dont la structure plane est rendue accessible dans l'espace par un artifice délibéré. Immenses et sombres, les « grands arbres » traversent la toile amenant ainsi une profondeur provoquée par un personnage représenté si minuscule que les arbres sous lesquels il s’abrite semblent encore plus colossaux. De façon significative et à l'exemple du présent tableau, les rares personnages présents dans les paysages du peintre suisse, ne sont pas le sujet principal du tableau, mais au contraire de simples faire-valoir de la nature luxuriante qui les entoure. Sur un carnet de croquis, vers 1885-87 Valotton écrit : « Je rêve d'une peinture dégagée de tout respect littéral de la nature, je voudrais reconstituer des paysages sur le seul secours de l'émotion qu'ils m'ont causée, quelques grandes lignes évocatrices, un ou deux détails, choisis, sans superstition d'exactitude d'heure ou d'éclairage. Au fond, ce serait une sorte de retour au fameux "paysage historique". "Pourquoi pas ?" » (notes de l'artiste sur un carnet de croquis, vers 1885-87, in M. Ducrey, Félix Vallotton, L'œuvre peint, Le peintre, Lausanne, 2005, vol. I, p. 178). En 1909, Theodor Bühler (1877-1915) acquiert cette peinture de Félix Vallotton directement auprès de l'artiste, avec l'aide de Hans Hahnloser (1899-1974), membre de la célèbre famille de collectionneurs d'art Hahnloser de Winterthur. Ses parents, Arthur et Hedy Hahnloser-Bühler, avaient de bonnes relations avec de nombreux artistes modernes de l'époque, dont Vallotton, Pierre Bonnard et Ferdinand Hodler. La famille vivait dans la Villa Flora à Winterthur, qui sert aujourd'hui de musée pour présenter leur impressionnante collection. Ses voyages ont conduit Theodor Bühler en Grande-Bretagne, où il a été séduit par le style des maisons de campagne anglaises. Cette inspiration le conduit à confier à l'architecte anglais Mackay Hugh Baillie (1865-1945) Scott la conception et la construction de la Villa Waldbühl dans le village d'Uzwil, en Suisse orientale, entre 1907 et 1911. Theodor, sa femme et leurs cinq enfants ont fait de la Villa Waldbühl leur résidence. L'intérieur et le jardin de la villa ont été profondément influencés par le mouvement Arts and Crafts, mêlant harmonieusement la tradition et les avancées techniques modernes. Ce style unique a créé un espace de vie harmonieux qui reflète les goûts éclectiques et les influences artistiques de Theodor.
In Félix Vallotton's own artistic terminology, this painting is a ‘composed landscape’. The composition was produced using a working method that the artist began to develop at the beginning of the twentieth century and that he applied, with a few exceptions, to all his landscape paintings from 1909 onwards. From then on, he no longer painted his landscapes ‘en plein air’, but in his Paris studio - or in the studio in Honfleur, which he had converted into an annex of the ‘Villa Beaulieu’, his summer residence. The motif, very similar to that depicted in Vue d'Honfleur, matin d'été (‘View of Honfleur, summer morning’), dated 1910, suggests that the same area of the Côte de Grâce is depicted here. The sense of calm and quiet magnificence emanating from this painting and the others from this Norman series are conveyed by a remarkably thoughtful composition typical of Vallotton's work of this period, in which each natural element of the scene is echoed in a delicate symphony of contrasts. As is often the case in Vallotton's work, the painting is constructed in parallel strips, whose flat structure is made accessible in space by a deliberate device. the imposing dark ‘big trees’ cut across the canvas, creating depth through a figure so tiny that the trees under which he is sheltering appear even more colossal. Significantly, and as exemplified in this painting, the few figures in the Swiss painter's landscapes are not the main subject of the painting, but rather mere foils to the lush nature that surrounds them. In a sketchbook, circa 1885-87, Valotton wrote : ‘I dream of painting free from any literal respect of nature, I would like to reconstruct landscape, only with the help of the emotion it aroused in me, a few evocative lines, one or two details, selected without any superstition regarding exactness of time or light. It would be in fact a return to the "historical landscape". Why not?’ (quoted in M. Ducrey, Félix Vallotton, L'œuvre peint, Le peintre, Lausanne, 2005, vol. I, p. 178).
What is truly extraordinary with Les grands arbres, environs d’Honfleur, in addition to being a prime example of Vallotton’s landscape painting, is that this masterpiece has stayed in the same private hands – the Theodor Bühler family - since the year it was executed, so for almost 120 years. In 1909, Theodor Bühler (1877-1915) acquired this painting by Félix Vallotton directly from the artist, facilitated by Hans Hahnloser (1899-1974), a member of the renowned art-collecting Hahnloser family from Winterthur. His parents, Arthur and Hedy Hahnloser-Bühler, were well-connected with many prominent modern artists of the time, including Vallotton, Pierre Bonnard, and Ferdinand Hodler. The family lived in the Villa Flora in Winterthur, which today serves as a museum showcasing their impressive collection. His travels took Theodor Bühler to Great Britain, where he was captivated by the English country house style. This inspiration led him to commission the English architect Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott (1865-1945) to design and build Villa Waldbühl in the village of Uzwil, located in eastern Switzerland, between 1907 and 1911.Theodor, along with his wife and their five children, made Villa Waldbühl their home. The villa’s interior and garden were deeply influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement, seamlessly blending tradition with modern technical advancements. This unique style created a harmonious living space that reflected Theodor’s eclectic tastes and artistic influences.
In Félix Vallotton's own artistic terminology, this painting is a ‘composed landscape’. The composition was produced using a working method that the artist began to develop at the beginning of the twentieth century and that he applied, with a few exceptions, to all his landscape paintings from 1909 onwards. From then on, he no longer painted his landscapes ‘en plein air’, but in his Paris studio - or in the studio in Honfleur, which he had converted into an annex of the ‘Villa Beaulieu’, his summer residence. The motif, very similar to that depicted in Vue d'Honfleur, matin d'été (‘View of Honfleur, summer morning’), dated 1910, suggests that the same area of the Côte de Grâce is depicted here. The sense of calm and quiet magnificence emanating from this painting and the others from this Norman series are conveyed by a remarkably thoughtful composition typical of Vallotton's work of this period, in which each natural element of the scene is echoed in a delicate symphony of contrasts. As is often the case in Vallotton's work, the painting is constructed in parallel strips, whose flat structure is made accessible in space by a deliberate device. the imposing dark ‘big trees’ cut across the canvas, creating depth through a figure so tiny that the trees under which he is sheltering appear even more colossal. Significantly, and as exemplified in this painting, the few figures in the Swiss painter's landscapes are not the main subject of the painting, but rather mere foils to the lush nature that surrounds them. In a sketchbook, circa 1885-87, Valotton wrote : ‘I dream of painting free from any literal respect of nature, I would like to reconstruct landscape, only with the help of the emotion it aroused in me, a few evocative lines, one or two details, selected without any superstition regarding exactness of time or light. It would be in fact a return to the "historical landscape". Why not?’ (quoted in M. Ducrey, Félix Vallotton, L'œuvre peint, Le peintre, Lausanne, 2005, vol. I, p. 178).
What is truly extraordinary with Les grands arbres, environs d’Honfleur, in addition to being a prime example of Vallotton’s landscape painting, is that this masterpiece has stayed in the same private hands – the Theodor Bühler family - since the year it was executed, so for almost 120 years. In 1909, Theodor Bühler (1877-1915) acquired this painting by Félix Vallotton directly from the artist, facilitated by Hans Hahnloser (1899-1974), a member of the renowned art-collecting Hahnloser family from Winterthur. His parents, Arthur and Hedy Hahnloser-Bühler, were well-connected with many prominent modern artists of the time, including Vallotton, Pierre Bonnard, and Ferdinand Hodler. The family lived in the Villa Flora in Winterthur, which today serves as a museum showcasing their impressive collection. His travels took Theodor Bühler to Great Britain, where he was captivated by the English country house style. This inspiration led him to commission the English architect Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott (1865-1945) to design and build Villa Waldbühl in the village of Uzwil, located in eastern Switzerland, between 1907 and 1911.Theodor, along with his wife and their five children, made Villa Waldbühl their home. The villa’s interior and garden were deeply influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement, seamlessly blending tradition with modern technical advancements. This unique style created a harmonious living space that reflected Theodor’s eclectic tastes and artistic influences.