Léo Gausson (14 February 1860 – 27 October 1944) was a French landscape painter in the

Neo-impressionist Neo-Impressionism is a term coined by French art critic Félix Fénéon in 1886 to describe an art movement founded by Georges Seurat. Seurat's most renowned masterpiece, '' A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte'', marked the beginn ...

and

Synthetic Synthetic things are composed of multiple parts, often with the implication that they are artificial. In particular, 'synthetic' may refer to: Science * Synthetic chemical or compound, produced by the process of chemical synthesis * Synthetic o ...

styles. He was also a printmaker and sculptor.

Biography

He was born in

Lagny-sur-Marne Lagny-sur-Marne (, literally ''Lagny on Marne'') is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France from the centre of Paris. The commune of Lagny-sur-Marne is part of the ...

. He began his art education by taking evening classes, mostly devoted to sculpture, at the " National School of Decorative Arts". When he first turned to painting, he found his inspiration in the

Barbizon School The Barbizon school of painters were part of an art movement towards Realism in art, which arose in the context of the dominant Romantic Movement of the time. The Barbizon school was active roughly from 1830 through 1870. It takes its name f ...

, to which he was introduced by a local artist, originally from Spain, named Antonio Cortès (1827–1908), who had studied with

Constant Troyon Constant Troyon (August 28, 1810 – February 21, 1865) was a French painter of the Barbizon school. In the early part of his career he painted mostly landscapes. It was only comparatively late in life that Troyon found his ''métier'' as a pa ...

. Later, he became acquainted with the xylographers,

Maximilien Luce Maximilien Luce (13 March 1858 – 6 February 1941) was a prolific French Neo-impressionist artist, known for his paintings, illustrations, engravings, and graphic art, and also for his anarchist activism. Starting as an engraver, he then c ...

and Émile-Gustave Cavallo-Péduzzi, after which he produced posters from

lithograph Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

s and woodcuts. In 1885, he considered his artistic development to be complete; as reflected in a lengthy letter to

Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of ...

, with whom he had long corresponded. He also made an extended stay in

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

. In June 1890, Gausson was mentioned in a letter from Theo van Gogh to his brother

Vincent Vincent ( la, Vincentius) is a male given name derived from the Roman name Vincentius, which is derived from the Latin word (''to conquer''). People with the given name Artists *Vincent Apap (1909–2003), Maltese sculptor *Vincent van Gogh ...

"Vincent Van Gogh: The Letters"]. Van Gogh Museum Amsterdam. Retrieved August 24, 2020. in connection with a proposed exchange of paintings which was completed after Vincent’s death. Ever desiring something new, he slowly turned to Synthetism and, from 1889 to 1894, simplified his paintings and brightened his colors. During that period, he participated in avant-garde exhibitions; notably with "

Les XX ''Les XX'' ( French; "''Les Vingt''"; ; ) was a group of twenty Belgian painters, designers and sculptors, formed in 1883 by the Brussels lawyer, publisher, and entrepreneur Octave Maus. For ten years, they held an annual exhibition of their art ...

" in Brussels, the association "" in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

and in Paris at

Le Barc de Boutteville The art gallery of Le Barc de Boutteville, at 47 Rue le Peletier, Rue Le Peletier, 9th arrondissement, was one of the few places in Paris in the 1890s where young artists were welcome to present their work to the public, in the years after the deat ...

and the "

Salon des Cent ''Salon des Cent'' ("Salon of the One Hundred") was a commercial art exhibition in Paris, based at 31 Rue Bonaparte. The ''Salon'' sold color posters, prints and reproductions of artwork to the general public at reasonable prices. It was establi ...

". Some of his poster designs were reproduced in the magazine ''

Les Maîtres de l'Affiche ''Maîtres de l'Affiche'' (Masters of the Poster) refers to 256 color lithographic plates used to create an art publication during the Belle Époque in Paris, France. The collection, reproduced from the original works of ninety-seven artists in a ...

''. He also had a connection with the

Symbolist Symbolism was a late 19th-century art movement of French and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts seeking to represent absolute truths symbolically through language and metaphorical images, mainly as a reaction against naturalism and realis ...

movement; corresponding with several noted writers. Later, he would provide illustrations for works by and

Gustave Kahn Gustave Kahn (21 December 1859, in Metz – 5 September 1936, in Paris) was a French Symbolist poet and art critic. He was also active, via publishing and essay-writing, in defining Symbolism and distinguishing it from the Decadent Movement. ...

provided commentary for the catalog of Gausson's 1896 exhibition at the Galerie Laffitte. Gausson himself wrote a book of short stories, ''Histoires vertigineuses'' (Giddy Stories), but it was not very successful. In 1900, he was named an officer of the

Académie des Beaux-Arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...

for his work on a monument to the builder, at

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement ...

. Despite his successes, he continued to have financial difficulties. In an effort to alleviate them, he took a position with the French Colonial Administration and was posted to

Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...

in 1901, where he spent eight years. Upon returning to France, he settled in Paris. Having no children, he often visited his nephew, who had a small shop in Lagny-sur-Marne. He was there when the German Army occupied Paris in 1940, and remained until his death.Archives of Paris (5th Arrondissement)
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Selected paintings

File:L333 - Léo Gausson - Les arbres du quai de la Gourdine à Lagny.jpg, Trees on the Banks of the Quai de la Gourdine File:L334 - Léo Gausson - sous bois.JPG, Undergrowth File:L336 - Léo Gausson - Les toits pointillés.JPG, The Roofs File:L0577 - Léo Gausson - Le hangar couvert de Chaume à Gouvernes.jpg, Hangar with a Thatched Roof File:Gausson-selfportrait2.jpg, A later self-portrait

References

External links

Le site de Léo GAUSSON

More works by Gausson
@ ArtNet {{DEFAULTSORT:Gausson, Leo 1860 births 1944 deaths 19th-century French painters French landscape painters French poster artists People from Lagny-sur-Marne Pointillism 20th-century French painters