Sophie Frémiet Rude

Acquired by a private collector, New York, 1960s;

Thence by descent within the family until sold, New Orleans, Crescent City Auction Gallery, 14 September 2024, lot 671;

Where acquired by the present owner.

Signed and dated 1840, this recently rediscovered family portrait constitutes an important addition to Sophie Frémiet Rude's œuvre. In its depiction of a father with his two young daughters, the painting is notable not only for its elegantly rendered figures and delicate color palette, but also for the insight it offers into Rude's personal and professional life.

Although the sitters' identities cannot be ascertained with certainty, one of the daughters is shown sketching, which may suggest that she was Rude's student. Indeed, following Rude's relocation to Paris with her husband François, who was an acclaimed sculptor, around 1827, the couple opened a studio and took on numerous students, many of whom were women artists. On this basis, the girls may be identified tentatively as Alice and Mathilde Lechêne, who were born in 1833 and 1836. This would make them seven and four years old respectively in 1840, when the portrait was executed, which chimes with their depiction here. Rude was formally listed as the teacher of Mathilde and the girls' mother, Amicie, in exhibition catalogues. Furthermore, Alice, who is portrayed sketching, became a painter and exhibited at the Exposition de la Société des Amis des Arts de Dijon in 1858. It is therefore entirely possible that Rude gave her some informal instruction at this early age.

While Rude achieved considerable recognition during her own time, having studied under Jacques-Louis David and winning numerous medals at Salons in Ghent and Paris, her legacy has often been eclipsed by that of her husband in the modern era. However, this imbalance has begun to shift in recent years, as attested by the sale of Rude's Death of Cenchirias in these rooms in 2022 for $685,500.¹ Likewise, the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, acquired an important Neoclassical portrait from early in Rude's career in 2024.²

¹ New York, Sotheby's, 27 January 2022, lot 50; oil on canvas, 81 ¼ by 100 ¼ in.

² Inv. no. 2024.25; oil on canvas, 63 ⅞ by 46 ⅝ in.