Pieds d'alouette

The bountiful blooms of Pieds d'alouette epitomize Fantin-Latour's mastery of the genre of still-life painting. A marvel of color and texture, the present work was executed with a keen attention to detail and a delicate rendering of the feathery texture in its soft petals and greenery. It was his personal connection to the subject matter, having gathered many of his flowers directly from the garden of his home, which accounts for this extraordinary handling and meticulous execution.
In the present work, Fantin-Latour focuses on the elegant blossoms of the delphinium, whose towering, upright petals layer and overlap as they wrap themselves around its delicate stem. The cascading blooms, masterfully arranged in a muted ceramic vase, are remarkably individual, with the artist having captured the distinct hue and surface of each flower. Jacques-Emile Blanche remarked on the artist’s ability to capture the individuality of each element stating, “He captures the physiognomy of the flower he is copying; it is that particular flower and not another on the same stem: he draws and constructs the flower, and does not satisfy himself with giving an impression of it through bright, cleverly juxtaposed splashes of color" (quoted in "Fantin-Latour," Revue de Paris, 15 May 1906, pp. 311-312).
The first owners of this work were Fantin-Latour’s most important patrons, Edwin and Elizabeth Ruth Edwards. The three began their friendship at Sunbury-on-Thames in 1861, where for the following years, the couple would champion the artist, introducing him to the most important dealers and collectors in Victorian England.