Mother and Children (Madame Feydeau and Her Children)

This work depicts Carolus-Duran's daughter, Marianne Carolus-Duran and her children. She was the wife of Georges Feydeau, who was known as a playwright and collector of works by the Impressionist, and the Nabis. This work, with its captivating blend of Impressionist brushwork and traditional Academic methods that palpably render the subject, can be seen as a typical example of the "Salon paintings" that attracted general popular approval. This period was remarkable for the rise of various groups who opposed the considerable Impressionist influence upon the painting community. Many of the Salon painters who represented the mainstream artistic world experimented with Academic compromises while partially imbibing the forms of the Impressionists. The triangular form of the clothed mother and children dominating the center of this composition conveys the familial harmony idealized by the materialist bourgeoisie of the day. Carolus-Duran's characteristic use of a simple contrasting palette can be seen in Madame Feydeau's black dress and the red flower on her breast, and the white dressed girl with her pale yellow flower. Reflecting the not inconsiderable interest in Spain found in 19th century French art, black was one of the artist's favorite colors, and his close friend Manet's love of the effects of black is well known. (Source: Masterpieces of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, 2009, cat. no. 99)