Claude-Émile Schuffenecker

Provenance:

Private collection, France (acquired at the sale of the Jules Claretie Collection, Paris, 1914)

Claude-Émile Schuffenecker was a painter, collector and art teacher. His wide-ranging network included artists, writers, musicians, art dealers and art critics. In 1884, he was involved in the founding of the Société des Artistes Indépendants and engaged intensively with the new artistic developments of his time. This portrait of a man was painted in 1885, during a period of stylistic reorientation.

Depicted in half-profile, the subject gazes out of the painting. Against a loosely rendered background, Schuffenecker develops a finely balanced colour scheme of green, blue, pink and ochre tones. Two bright red blossoms provide a striking splash of colour. Short and longer, parallel brushstrokes give structure to the face, beard and clothing, lending the surface a lively, slightly shimmering effect. Light and dark areas are modelled not so much through light-dark contrasts as through finely graded shades of colour.

The identity of the person depicted remains unconfirmed to this day. Given Schuffenecker’s extensive network, several individuals could have served as the model; the most likely candidate is the painter Fernand Quignon, who was Schuffenecker’s neighbour on Rue Boulard in 1885. However, it has not yet been possible to identify the subject with certainty. Regardless of this, the portrait documents Schuffenecker’s engagement with the new artistic movements of the 1880s and his shift towards a modern style of painting.