Two deer at rest in the forest of Fontainebleau

This watercolor dates from Barye’s late period, when his treatment of landscape becomes more naturalistic after sketching in the forest of Fontainebleau. The signature without the final period is to be found on the artist’s late watercolors, and may have been added by a member from his close family circle (C.O. Zieseniss, Les aquarelles de Barye. Étude critique et catalogue raisonné, Paris, 1954, p. 33).
The Wildenstein exhibition showed 14 watercolors of deer including two works from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. 29.100.594; inv. 29.100.584).