Auguste Bouvard/Marc Aldine (French 1882-1956)
The Entrance to the Grand Canal, Venice
oil on canvas, signed lower right "Marc Aldine", notable architectural landmarks depicted include the Piazzetta San Marco, the Biblioteca Marciana and Santa Maria della Salute.
Auguste Bouvard is one of the most recognized painters of Venetian canals. Born in France in 1882, he began studies at l’École des Beaux Arts in Paris. After graduating he became the Director of Architectural Services for the Seine and was responsible for the construction in Paris of the Bourse du Travail and the Boulevard Morland. He continued to paint, however, and would travel throughout Europe painting landscapes and selling them under his pseudonyms Marc Aldine and Pelletier (his wife’s maiden name). It was then, that his dealer suggested he focus on Venice as a subject. He began to paint Venice and its canals almost exclusively, now using the name Auguste Bouvard. He was so successful that he trained his son Antoine in his style and they would both exhibit regularly.
This view of the entrance to the Grand Canal in Venice is unusual as it is signed with his earlier pseudonym Marc Aldine. This suggests it is either an early work or, as it is of a more expansive view, he did not want it to be compared to his canal paintings.
Size: 19.5 h x 26.5 w in (with frame 26 h x 31 w in)
J21857