Biography from Anderson Galleries, LLC:
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Gaston La Touche, a French painter and printmaker, was born in
Saint-Cloud in 1854. A self-taught artist, he was from childhood
determined to be a painter and was supported in this ambition by his
well-to-do parents. His first paintings (1880s) were domestic
scenes in the 17th century Dutch style. They were vigorous, harsh
and somber and met with no success; he burnt most of them in 1891.
In
the late 1880s, the influence of his friend Felix Bracquemond prompted
him to discard his early style in favor of the colors favored by the
Impressionists; he also shifted his brushwork to small, petal-like
strokes of color. In 1890, he exhibited Phlox and Peonies—both
colorful scenes of women, children and flowers—at the Societe Nationale
des Beaux-Arts, which brought him immediate success. These works
represent the beginning of a radical shift in La Touche’s subject
matter, palette and technique.
During the six years until 1896, he gradually, yet steadily evolved
from realism to the idealism that would become the hallmark of his
oeuvre: the creation of a harmonious, luminous and charming world of
parks and gardens, nymphs and fountains, fireworks, and
fetes-champetres.
La Touche participated in shows mounted by the
Societe des Artistes Francais in the 1880s and 1890s, receiving a third
place medal in 1884 and second place medal in 1888. In 1889 La
Touche won a bronze medal at the l’Exposition Universelle and was later
awarded a gold medal at the 1900 l’Exposition Universelle. In
1900, La Touche also received the Legion d’honneur and was made an
officer of the Legion in 1909.
As further proof of his success, in 1908 an impressive retrospective
featured over 300 of his works at the Galerie Georges Petit in
Paris. In 1909 his paintings were exhibited in another large show
at Boussod and Valadon in The Hague. At this time, La Touche was
awarded several official commissions for large-scale decorative
schemes. These included four views of fetes at Versailles for the
Palais d’Elysee, four decorative panels showing landscapes with figures
for the Ministere de l’Agriculture, four pictures representing the arts
for the Ministere de la Justice and decorations for the dining room of
the liner La France. He also painted murals for the house of the
dramatist Edmond Rostand at Cambo, Pyrenees-Atlantiques. These large
canvases and murals, reminiscent of the work of such 18th century
artists as Hubert Robert and Jean Honore Fragonard, are characterized
by glowing colors and broad brushstrokes. La Touche’s most well
known works remain his light-filled garden and fetes gallants
paintings, all completed with his trademark delicate brushwork and
beautifully vivid palette.
Museum Collections Include:
The
Art Institute of Chicago; The Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco; The
Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg; Dayton Art Institute, Ohio; Museum of
Modern Art, Paris; Art Gallery of New South Wales, Australia; Musee de
Medan, France; Alencon, France; le Mans, France
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