01 Painting, Streets of Paris, VICTOR GABRIEL GILBERT'S At the Flower Market, with footnotes, Part 77

VICTOR GABRIEL GILBERT (FRENCH, 1847-1933)

At the Flower Market

Oil on panel

173⁄4 x 215⁄8 in. (45.1 x 55 cm.)

Private collection

At the Flower Market, in contrast to many of Gilbert’s compositions, is set in one of the smaller flower stalls in the French capital. In the center of the composition, an elegant young lady deliberates over her choices for the day, testing the fragrance of pink roses, watched and perhaps encouraged by the stall’s proprietor. To the right and set on the ground are neatly arranged bright bouquets wrapped in white paper to set off their brilliant colors. Pots of brilliant red geraniums dot the foreground, while a small vegetable stand defines the background to the left. This vibrant image is enhanced by Gilbert’s virtuoso technique, realistic sense of detail and close observation of nature. In At the Flower Market, Gilbert beckons the viewer to enter a time gone by, where the fragrance of flowers still lingers. More on this painting

Victor Gabriel Gilbert was born in Paris the 13 February 1847 and died in the 21 July 1933. He was a French painter. He is buried in Montmartre cemetery in Paris. In 1860 he apprenticed to a painter and decorator. He followed with evening art classes under the direction of Father Levasseur, the School of the City of Paris. In the late 1870s, his taste for naturalism is developed and he turned to genre painting with scenes of streets, cafes, markets, especially that of Halles . He obtained a second class medal at the Salon of 1880 and a silver medal at the 1889 World Fair . It becomes a member of the French Society of Artists in 1914.

Victor Gilbert was appointed Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1897, and received the Prix Léon Bonnat in 1926. More on Victor Gabriel Gilbert