Évariste Carpentier

Évariste Carpentier studied at Royal Academy of Fine Arts. The field of work recorded is painting. Subjects and genres recorded for the work are history. Jules Bastien-Lepage is recorded as an influence. Positions recorded include Director of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Liège and teacher. Works named in the authority record are Madame Roland in the prison of Sainte Pélagie. Work by Évariste Carpentier is recorded in the collections of Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp, M Leuven, Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Musée d'Art et d'Histoire de Cholet and Broelmuseum.

• Name — Évariste Carpentier • Born — 2 December 1845 • Birthplace — Kuurne, Belgium • Died — 22 September 1922 • Place of death — Liège, Belgium • Known for — Painting • Movement — Academicism, naturalism, Impressionism (luminism) • Notable Works — The Strangers Washing turnips The Small Pond

Évariste Carpentier was born into a modest family of farmers in Kuurne. He became a pupil at the Academy of Fine Arts of Courtrai in 1861, under the direction of Henri De Pratere. There, he obtained many distinctions. In 1864, he was admitted to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp where he received tuition from Nicaise de Keyser. He proved to be gifted in painting from life, and achieved the prize of excellence in 1865, which allowed him to obtain a private studio in the Academy the following year.

• Illustration — Chouans in Ambush at the Battle of La Gravelle (1793), Musée d'art et d'histoire de Cholet In 1872, Carpentier established himself in Antwerp and acquired his own studio. It is there that he painted many commissioned works, which did not yet reflect his artistic personality. He began his career addressing religious topics, themes of antiquity and scenes inspired by the Dutch Golden Age painting of the 17th century, but it is in the field of historical painting that he became well known. The painting "Les premières nouvelles du désastre de la Grande Russie", exhibited at the Artistic Circle of Antwerp in 1872, is an example of this success. In response to the academic tastes of his time, he liked to paint farm animals and, more generally, the charms of rural life. At around this period, Évariste Carpentier befriended some of his classmates from the Academy, including Emile Claus, Theodoor Verstraete, Frans Hens and Jan Van Beers. They met often at the exhibitions organised by the Artistic Circle of Antwerp. From 1874 to 1877, Émile Claus occupied a corner of Carpenter’s studio. In 1876, an old knee injury, caused in his youth, developed serious complications and threatened to require amputation. The pain prevented him from working. He left Antwerp to return to his hometown, where his sister provided him with care and treatment for the next three years.

• Illustration — The Lady-strangers (1887) Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium On the advice of his doctor, Carpentier left Kuurne in 1879 for the south of France, in order to speed up his recovery. The following year, on his return, he stopped in Paris, where he met his friend Jan Van Beers. He was persuaded to move to the French capital, where Van Beers would share his studio with him. Carpentier began to produce realistic paintings of Parisian bourgeoisie. In 1881, he was finally able to get rid of his crutches permanently and settled in 71 Boulevard de Clichy. He then followed his passion of historical painting. Scenes of the French Revolution, as well as the episodes of the War in the Vendée, became his main sources of inspiration. Having always had a predilection for dramatic episodes, Carpentier refined his composition skills in the search of better ways to depict the pathetic character of minor historical facts, such as those in "Chouans en déroute" (1883) and "Madame Roland à la prison Sainte-Pélagie" (1886). His paintings became highly appreciated by the public. • Illustration — Promenade en bord de mer (Menton, 1888) This success constituted, however, an obstacle from his discovery of "plein air" painting. In this regard, the year 1884 marked a turning point in his career. Carpentier finally left the conventions of academism and found his true artistic voice. After discovering the works of Jules Bastien-Lepage, he began to dedicate himself to "plein air" painting, turning to nature through the Realism movement. He stayed for two seasons principally at Saint-Pierre-lès-Nemours, near the forest of Fontainebleau, but also at Le Tréport and at Saint-Malo.

• Illustration — Washing turnips (1890) Museum of Fine Arts (Liège), Liège Although Carpentier only gave up his studio in Paris in 1892, he returned to Belgium in 1886. There, he witnessed the increasing popularity of impressionism among artists from Brussels, such as Les XX. During his long stay in France, he had already been exposed to impressionists, but he had been influenced to a greater extent by the naturalism of Jules Bastien-Lepage and Jules Breton. His initial outdoor paintings, which had been produced with darker, thicker strokes, gave way to a noticeably brighter palette and progressively lighter brushstrokes. Once established in Belgium, he continued to travel. From 1886 to 1896, he travelled through the Belgian and French countryside, seeking new landscapes. He frequently visited the Campine in Genk with his friends, the landscape artists Franz Courtens and Joseph Coosemans. He also visited Brittany, a region that had a particularly strong influence on him. In 1888, Carpentier married Jeanne Smaelen in Verviers. Five children were produced from this marriage. In 1890, the young couple moved to Belgian Brabant, at Overijse, where Carpentier painted "Washing Turnips", an important work that earned the artist a medal in Paris, and which was acquired by the MAMAC in Liège. • Illustration — The Small Pond. Museum of Fine Arts, Verviers In 1892, Carpentier moved again, this time to La Hulpe. During this period, the artist flourished and sought to find the truth of nature, according to his impressionist vision, parallel to that of his friend Emile Claus. He turned to delicate tones and atmospheric touches. Carpentier became one of the most active propagators of luminism.

• Illustration — Summer Holiday Musée Fabre, Montpellier • Illustration — Playing child M - Museum Leuven • Royal Museum of Fine Arts - Antwerp • Episode of the Vendée Revolt 1793 • Cowherd girl in the Ardennes • Alte Nationalgalerie - Berlin • Summer Sun (1896) • Town hall of Blegny • Execution in Blegny, August 1914 • Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium - Brussels • The Lady-strangers (1887) · (Town hall of Kuurne) • Flemish Community • Breakfast on the farm - (Gaasbeek Castle) • The visit • French Community of Belgium • After School - (Solvay Castle) • Art and History Museum - Cholet • Chouans in ambush (c. 1883) • Chouans routed (1883) • Broel Museum - Courtray • False Alarm (1884) • Marsh in the Campine • The Reprimand • The Young Angler • An Intimate Conversation (c. 1893) • The Municipal Museum of Huy • Afternoon Nap (c. 1897) • Town hall of Kuurne • Revolt in the Vendée 1793 (1880) • The Bride • Visit to the convalescent (c. 1887) • The Apple Thief (c. 1892) • Museum of Fine Arts - Liège • De verboden zwempartij (1877) • Washing Turnips (1890) • The Little Goatherd • North Sea (1897) • The Ducks • Prince-Bishops' Palace of Liège • Prince-Bishops' Palace (c. 1900) • Grand Curtius Palace, Quai de Maastricht (c. 1900) • Church of St. Jacques (c. 1900) • Church of St. Bartholemew (c. 1900) • Pont des Arches en Church of St. Pholien (c. 1900) • Basse Sauvenière (c. 1900) • Museum M - Leuven • Playing Child • Musée Fabre - Montpellier • Summer Holiday • International Art Museum of America - San Francisco • The Turnip Pickers • The Revoltella Museum - Trieste • Madame Roland in Sainte-Pelagie (1886) • Museum of Verviers • The Small Pond (c. 1894) • Private collection (Salon Brussels 1903) • Premiers Beaux Jours