Paul Desire Trouillebert (1829-1900)
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Paul Desire Trouillebert was born in Paris, and at the beginning of his career he produced portraits, and genre scenes. He trained under the artist, Auguste-Antoine Ernest Herbert. Herbert’s range of subjects was diverse, and included, portraits, mythology, and landscapes. Trouillebert was to go on to produce a wide range of works which included, portraits, landscapes in the style of the Barbizon school, and nudes.
His debut at the Salon in 1865, was a painting entitled, ‘Portrait of Miss A’. He was to go on to exhibit at least one portrait, at each Salon thereafter. However, Trouillebert began to take a great interest in the art of landscape painting when he became aware of the work of the great painter of the Barbizon school, Jean- Baptiste Camille Corot.
Trouillebert began producing landscapes, and painting in plein air and therefore associated himself with the traditions of the Barbizon school. He also began training under the artist Charles-Francois Jalabert, and exhibited his first landscape in the Salon in 1869. The landscapes that he produced were said to be a precursor to impressionism. This was because he was very concerned with the light, and atmospheric changes, as the Impressionists came to be, in due course.
Jean- Baptiste Camille Corot was certainly his hero, and his landscapes bore a striking resemblance to those of Corot. The resemblance was such, it was get him into trouble with the law. The writer, Alexandre Dumas, purchased a painting of his, thinking that it was a Corot, and when he discovered that it was in fact by Trouillebert, a lawsuit ensued. This was at a time where forgeries of Corot were rampant both in France, and in America, where he was very popular with collectors. This unfortunate incident had a positive side, the enormous amount of publicity that the lawsuit attracted, lead to Trouillebert, and his work being better known in France.
Trouillebert was also to receive a number of commissions. He was commissioned by the public works contractor, Edme Piot to produce a painting reflecting the construction of the railways. The result was the painting with a lengthy title, called, ‘Construction of an Elevated Railway: Bridge over the Cours of Vincennes’. This now hangs in the Cleveland Museum of Art. He was also asked to produce other views of the Paris railways construction.
Trouillebert also produced paintings of nudes, and had a great interest in Orientalism. In 1874, he produced a striking painting in the Orientalist style, entitled, ‘Servant of the Harem’, and in 1884, his painting of nudes, ‘The Bathers’, was very well received at the Salon.
Although, there is no doubt that Trouillebert was a very talented painter in his own right, it is likely that he will always be remembered for the striking resemblance that his paintings had, in style, and subject matter to those of Jean- Baptiste Camille Corot.