Attributed to Maximilien Luce (French, 1858-1941), Horses Bathing in the Seine - A Study

Oil on panel, circa 1910, unsigned, the panel with Hammer Galleries stamp to verso with inventory no. 20063, retaining Trosby Auction Galleries label to verso of cardboard backing, presented in a gilt composition frame.

Board 9 3/4 x 20 in.; Frame dimensions 17 x 27 in.

Hammer Galleries, New York
Trosby Auction Galleries, West Palm Beach, Florida
Acquired from the above

Maximilien Luce was a French painter, printmaker, and illustrator associated with Neo-Impressionism. Born in Paris, he trained as an engraver before turning increasingly to painting and becoming closely associated with Georges Seurat, Paul Signac, and Camille Pissarro. During the 1880s, Luce adopted the Divisionist technique of applying small touches of contrasting color, exhibiting with the Société des Artistes Indépendants and emerging as an important member of the Neo-Impressionist circle.

Luce painted a remarkably broad range of subjects, from the streets and industrial outskirts of Paris to landscapes, seaports, and scenes of working-class life. His travels took him throughout France and Belgium, where the factories and steelworks of the Charleroi region inspired some of his most distinctive compositions. Although his later paintings became freer and more Impressionistic in handling, Luce retained his strong interest in light, color, and everyday life throughout his long career. He served as president of the Société des Artistes Indépendants from 1935 to 1940.

See Christie's, Impressionist & Modern Art, December 10, 2008, Lot 47, for a finished painting featuring a closely related composition.

Good estate condition; two small spots of retouch to edge of panel in upper left corner visible under UV light; minor rubbing to frame.