Henri-Martin room
In 2021, the Girault family donated to the city their collection centred on Henri Martin: 19 works, including 17 by the painter, after whom the museum is named, donated by Odile Girault and her son, Pierre Girault. The collection, assembled over the years by Odile Girault and her husband, Georges, forms a highly cohesive whole. The bulk of the collection centres on representations of Labastide-du-Vert, the village where Mrs Girault grew up and where, as a child, she used to encounter Henri Martin.
Several years later, almost ‘by chance’, Odile Girault bought her first painting by the Lot-based artist. Whilst passing through Drouot (Auction Room), she spotted a study that she very much liked and whose style was familiar to her. She then learnt that it was a painting by Henri Martin and that it was affordable… and so her collection began.
The 1890s: A Thematic Evolution …
After receiving a classical education, Henri Martin moved closer to symbolist groups such as the ‘Rose-Croix’ (Rosicrucians). Symbolism is an artistic movement that encompasses literature, painting, and music. Its artists prioritise the imagination and the spirituel. They sought above all the ideal beauty of forms. The painter abandoned historical and dramatic subjects in order to represent poets seeking inspiration, the muses holding lyres or pensive young women.
… and Technique
Henri Martin, at the same time, developed a more personal technique.
Contour lines disappear and the brushstroke are divided. You will notice that it varies depending on the elements represented. Faces are composed of fine hatchings or minute dots whilst clothing or meadow grasses are rendered with long parallel lines. Patches of colour may be rounded, rectangular, or comma-shaped: this diversity of the brushwork brings the composition to life.
This technique is close to that of the early Impressionists; Henri Martin belongs to the next generation, often referred to as ‘postimpressionist’.
The painter is also a master colourist who subtly blends the colours on his palette. He enjoys working with the contrasts between shadows and light and capturing the particular atmosphere of a scene. In this way, he demonstrates his virtuosity while expressing a deep sensitivity.
The Places of Creation
In 1900, Henri Martin bought the Marquayrol estate in Labastide-du-Vert, in the Lot department. He had a studio built on the hill, a few hundred metres from the house. For 40 years, he spent much of the summer there – as well as visiting friends and travelling in Provence or in Italy.
In 1912, he bought a house in Saint-Cirq Lapopie, also in the Lot department, and stayed there in early spring. In 1923, he acquired a house in Collioure (southern French), where he spent the late summer.
In winter, he lived in Paris, first on Rue Denfert-Rochereau, then on the Boulevard Raspail. In 1907, the State granted him a large studio on Rue de l’Université, next to that of Rodin. There, he was able to carry out commissions for large-scale decorative works.
Labastide-du-Vert and Marquayrol provided Henri Martin with all the elements that he needed to work with. There, he painted from life, i.e., in the open air, producing studies on small wooden panels and on canvas. Tirelessly, he loved to depict the bridge, the church and the hills, but also the ponds and the pergolas in his garden.
Each time, he changed the composition, the viewpoint or the season. In this way, every work is unique.
