Peines de Coeur (Primary Title)
Heartbreak (Translation)
Charles Sprague Pearce, American, 1851 - 1914 (Artist)
Boston-born Pearce belonged to the generation of American artists who increasingly settled in France in the postbellum years. In 1884, he relocated from Paris to the rural village of Auvers-sur-Oise. “I want my peasants to be the real article,” he explained, “I want to see the fields and the trees, the hills, streams and country roads as they are.” Peines de Coeur was Pearce’s first painting produced in Auvers. In this narrative of loss and consolation, the artist reveals his considerable talents as a figure and landscape painter, blending realist and impressionist tendencies. When Peines de Coeur was exhibited at the 1885 Paris Salon, critics remarked on the “striking” effect of these combined styles and perspectives, harmonized by an encompassing natural light and luminous color scheme.
signed at lower right: "Charles Sprague Pearce"
J. Harwood and Louise B. Cochrane Fund for American Art
Paris, Societe des Artistes Francais, Salon de 1885, 103ieme exposition depuis l'annee 1673, May 1, 1885, no. 1927
Philadelphia, The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Fifty-Sixth Annual Exhibition, October 29-December 10, 1885, no. 253, winner of the Temple Gold Medal
Boston, Boston Art Club, 33rd Exhibition, Oil Paintings, January 15-February 13, 1886, no. 90, illus.
Boston, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, 1887
Colombus, Ohio, Ohio Centennial Exposition, September 4-October 19, 1888, no. 94, illus.
New York, Jordan-Volpe Gallery, A Rare Elegance: The Paintings of Charles Sprague Pearce (1851-1914), 1993, p. 34, 69, 82, no.20 illus.
New York, Beacon Hill Fine Art, American Painters on the French Scene, 1874-1914. April 23 - July 12, 1996, p. 16, no. 46, illus.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Americans in Paris, 1850-1910, September 4 - November 30, 2003, no.86, illus.
Philadelphia, The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Fifty-Sixth Annual Exhibition, October 29-December 10, 1885, no. 253, winner of the Temple Gold Medal
Boston, Boston Art Club, 33rd Exhibition, Oil Paintings, January 15-February 13, 1886, no. 90, illus.
Boston, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, 1887
Colombus, Ohio, Ohio Centennial Exposition, September 4-October 19, 1888, no. 94, illus.
New York, Jordan-Volpe Gallery, A Rare Elegance: The Paintings of Charles Sprague Pearce (1851-1914), 1993, p. 34, 69, 82, no.20 illus.
New York, Beacon Hill Fine Art, American Painters on the French Scene, 1874-1914. April 23 - July 12, 1996, p. 16, no. 46, illus.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Americans in Paris, 1850-1910, September 4 - November 30, 2003, no.86, illus.
Image released via Creative Commons CC-BY-NC
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