André-Léon Vivrel

André Léon Vivrel captures in the brilliance of his watercolor a Paris that we will never see again. Through his subtle palette, the light dances on the damp cobblestones, caresses the blueish roofs, and reveals the melancholic wear of the faded signs. In his scenes from the early 20th century, the anonymous silhouettes are not mere passersby: they blend into the scenery, inseparable from these alleys that still resonate with their presence. Vivrel doesn't just paint Paris; he paints its elusive atmosphere where time seems suspended.

Trained at the Académie Julian and the École des Beaux-Arts, he settled in the heart of Montmartre, on Rue Caulaincourt, a few steps from the studio of Renoir (1841-1919). In this neighborhood of artists and poets, he refined his vision and perfected his art. His first participation in the Salon des Artistes Français in 1913 marked the beginning of a career that would be interrupted by the Great War. Mobilized in 1914, he received the Croix de Guerre for "heroic conduct" in 1917. Returning to Montmartre after the conflict, he found his studio and immersed himself in the city that inspired him. He painted the vibrant alleys of the Butte, the Sacré-Coeur, and Notre-Dame. He produced a series of the latter, like those of Claude MONET (1840-1926), but also the banks of the Seine, whose changing reflections recall the Parisian landscapes of Albert LEBOURG (1849-1928). Paris was not his only field of exploration: from Brittany to the Mediterranean coast, from the South to Provence, he captured the light and life of the landscapes he crossed. Today, his works bear witness to a vanished Paris, captured with rare sensitivity. They are held in prestigious collections, such as those of the Musée Eugène-Boudin in Honfleur and the Musée Mandet in Riom.