Small watercolor by Robert Léopold Leprince, countryside scene, donkey rest stop, 19th century
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Small framed watercolor signed Robert Léopold Leprince* (1800-1847). It depicts a rural scene with several figures resting on a country road. A woman, looking exhausted, sits with her young child in her arms. Behind her, a donkey carrying baskets lies with a child on its back.
Before the woman, a man (perhaps a soldier) carrying a rifle and a banner is kneeling. Other figures can be discerned in the background. Presented in a giltwood frame. First half of the 19th century.
This watercolor is in good condition. Trace of a signature at the bottom.
Note: there are some minor damages and scratches on the frame, see photos.
Léopold Leprince was a French painter. The son of Anne-Pierre Leprince, he was the brother of Xavier Leprince (1799-1826) and Gustave Leprince (1810-1837), all landscape painters. He learned his craft from his father and his brother Xavier. He exhibited at the Salon from 1822 to 1844 and won his first medal in 1824. He also exhibited in Toulouse, Douai, Cambrai, and Lille between 1825 and 1845, and in Bordeaux in 1828. Later, he taught his brother Gustave the fundamentals of his art. The three brothers lived at the La Childebert studio in Paris. Léopold Leprince belonged to the second generation of painters who came to paint en plein air around 1825 in the Fontainebleau forest, as well as in the village of Moret-sur-Loing, before the Barbizon school developed around 1835. During his study trips in the region, he settled in Chailly-en-Bière, two kilometers from Barbizon. He later established himself in Chartres, where he built a clientele by painting rural landscapes.
He died on February 6, 1847 at the age of 46, in Chartres.
Highly regarded artist on Artprice.