“Petite nature morte” Gaillard Jean-Jacques

Beautiful impressionist still life of flowers on a table with books and a carnival mask. Vivid colours. Signed lower right and titled and signed by the artist on the back. Canvas pasted on panel. Original frame. Very interesting work.

Size: H 31 cm x W 25 cm – H 47 cm x W 43 cm

Belgian school, circa 1920-30.

Lit: Jean-Jacques Gaillard was an impressionist and even “over-impressionist” painter, draughtsman and engraver. Son of the painter Franz Gaillard, he was his pupil. Studied at the Brussels academy with Montald and Delville (1905-1914). He began in an impressionist style, went through a symbolist period and, from 1918 onwards, approached poetic and lyrical abstraction as a pioneer. Friend of James Ensor and Michel De Ghelderode. Stayed in Paris in the early 20s. From 1923, he took part in the activities of the “Sept, Arts” groups in Belgium and was a founder member of the “L’Assaut” circle (1925), defending the modernist spirit and placing his painting resolutely under the sign of research and experimentation. Developed a personal style that has been described as “surimpressionism”, characterised above all by tortuous lines. Predilection for landscapes, city views, figures, portraits, still lifes and compositions. He often incorporated texts and commentaries into his works. He was a professor at the Académie des Arts et Métiers in Saint-Gilles. Member of the Royal Academy of Belgium (1973).
Retrospective exhibition at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Brussels in 1989. Works in the Cabinet des Estampes in Brussels, the Conservatoire, the Museums of Ixelles, Brussels, Ghent, Ostend, Verviers and Tournai.