Alex LIZAL (1878 - 1929) - Lot 14

Alex LIZAL (1878 - 1929) Assembly in the Landes country Oil on canvas Signed lower left and dated 1904 Dimensions: 123 x 57 cm Fine Art Nouveau frame Provenance: Former Etienne Darricau collection, Château de la Roque. A great friend and benefactor of Lizal, Darricau was one of the painter's first patrons. By descent to the current owner Bibliography : Jean Roger Soubiran "Alex Lizal", Editions Passiflore 2015, reproduced on p. 39 An emblematic painter of the Landes region, Alex Lizal established himself in the early 20th century as one of the most sensitive and powerful witnesses to rural life in his native region. In 1904, he produced one of his masterpieces, L'assemblage au pays landais, a vast, monumental composition of which a version from the collection of the Caisse d'Epargne de Dax was dispersed in Bordeaux in 2022. The canvas presented here is the modello, painted in the same year as the final version. Although smaller in size (123 x 57 cm), it retains the essential composition and rhythm of the figures, reflecting Lizal's determination to capture the monumentality of a scene of peasant life. The assembled figures, the meticulously observed attitudes and the rigorous construction of space give this study all the intensity and coherence of a finished work. The provenance of this painting reinforces its historical importance: it belonged to Etienne Darricau, owner of Château de la Roque and Lizal's patron. A loyal friend and supporter, he was one of the first to recognize the painter's talent and accompany him in his career. This painting, which remains in his private collection, bears witness to the deep ties that bound the artist to his native region and local supporters. Importance in Lizal's career Dated 1904, this work occupies a pivotal position in Lizal's career. It was through L'assemblage au pays landais that he achieved national recognition, the work being hailed by the critics of the day for its vibrant realism, pictorial force and the dignity conferred on the Landais peasants. The painting we present, with its direct, spontaneous character, bears witness to the artist's creative process and his search for a balance between ethnographic observation and monumental ambition. Both a preparatory document and a stand-alone painting, it represents an essential milestone in the genesis of the masterpiece, while embodying the very spirit of Lizal's painting: an ethnological and poetic look at the Landes, its people and traditions. This study, kept in a private collection for over a century, is unquestionably one of the major works in Lizal's corpus, due to its rarity, prestigious provenance and direct link with the 1904 masterpiece. It illustrates the artist's success from the beginning of the century, and sheds light, through its intensity and simplicity, on the development of one of the most celebrated compositions in French regional painting.