*This painting is sold but the artist is regularly available in our inventory		Henri Le Sidaner* French, 1862-1939 La Place au clair de lune Oil on board 10 x 13 inches  Signed ‘Le Sidaner’ (lower right) and dated 1938 This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Yann Farinaux-Le Sidaner, dated August 15, 2006 Literature: La Place au clair de lune will be included in the supplement of the catalogue ‘Le Sidaner, L’oeuvre peint et gravé’ by Yann Farinaux-Le Sidaner. Le Sidaner specialized in twilight tableaux.  These nocturnes, such as La Place au clair de lune, are soft and poetic.  Their subtle tones, luminous palettes and dappled surfaces create a quiet, atmospheric world. Historians have frequently described Le Sidaner’s work in terms of musicality and silence.  Always in a ‘minor key,’ its subtle harmonies are seen to evoke a wistful mood that is intensified by the absence of figures: “His oeuvre displays a taste for tender, soft and silent atmospheres.  Gradually, he went so far as to eliminate all human presence from his pictures, as if he feared that the slightest human form might disturb their muffled silence” (Y. Farinaux- Le Sidaner, op cit., p. 31).  In the present work, Le Sidaner drew inspiration from the architectural environments and accoutrements man creates for himself: “The silent harmony of things is enough to evoke the presence of those who live among them.  Indeed, such presences are felt throughout his works.  Deserted they may be, but never empty” (C. Mauclair, Henri Le Sidaner, Paris, 1928, p. 12).  Born on the island of Mauritius, Le Sidaner studied with academic painter Alexandre Cabanel at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, but his zeal for the innovations of Impressionism led him to reject the conventions of his training in favor of the avant-garde movements of fin-de-siècle France.  Early in his career, he was linked with both the Pre-Raphaelites and the Symbolists.  Although he began his public career at the conservative Salon des Artistes Français, where he was recognized with a third-class medal and travel grant in 1891, he later exhibited at the Salon of the Société Nationale, a Société directed by Puvis de Chavannes after 1892 and known for it’s acceptance of modern tendencies.  He enjoyed continued favor and was regularly honored by solo shows not only in Paris, but also in London, Brussels, and the United States.  By 1930, Le Sidaner, already an officer of the Legion of Honor, was elected a member of the Institut, gaining a position at the Académie des Beaux-Arts.  He was named its president in 1937. Museum Collections Include: Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C.; Detroit Intsitute of the Arts, MI; Musee d’Art Modern, Paris; Museum of Modern Art, Rome; Nelson Atkins Museum, Kansas City; Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; Phoenix Art Museum, AZ; Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; The Tate Collection, England