Luce, born in Paris, was together with Georges Seurat and Paul Signac, one of the creators of “neo-impressionism,” a painting style based on the scientific study of light and the analysis of the way the eye perceives light. It was an attempt to capture on canvas the elusive effects of real light, and a way of painting that combined traditional elements of art with a more modern sensibility. Luce served an apprenticeship with the wood engraver H. T. Hildebrand, and later studied at the Académie Suisse with D. N. Maillart, Auguste Lançon, and Charles Carolus-Duran. He worked as an engraver in the print shop of Eugène Froment until his position was rendered obsolete by the invention of the zincography print process. He then began to study painting in earnest. He became familiar with the experimental theories of Seurat in 1885, and in 1887 he exhibited a number of paintings at the Salon des Indépendants which established him as a leading exponent of the new style.  

In 1894 Luce was thrown into jail for sympathizing with Anarchist causes. When he was released, he published a series of lithographs of prison life. By 1900, Luce became less involved politically and his painting also became more light-hearted. He became known for his bustling urban scenes, light-filled, landscapes, floral still lifes, and bathing scenes. Luce exhibited in almost all the Neo-impressionist exhibitions that took place in France, and also exhibited in Brussels in the salons of Les Vingt and La Libre Esthétique. In Paris he was a member of the Société des Artistes Indépendants, and served as its president after the death of Signac in 1935. Luce also had a number of one-man shows at the Galerie Bernheim-Jeune in Paris.  

His work is many major museum collections, including the Musée d’Orsay and the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris: Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Cleveland Museum of Art; Indianapolis Museum of Art; Saint Louis Museum of Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston: Thyssen-Bormemisza Museum, Madrid, and many others.  

 

Maximilien Luce  1858-1941
A Child Standing
Brown ink wash and charcoal drawing
Signed in pencli, lower right
Provenance: Private collection, Paris
Sheet size: 11 X 8 1/4 inches
Frame size: 16 3/4 X 14 1/4 inches
Accompanied by a certificate from Denise Bazetoux, acknowledged expert in the works of Luce
FC06201 Price On Request

 
Home Featured Artists Featured Works Antiques Shows