The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 23, 2024

Monsieur Martin

Monsieur Martin

1840
(French, 1814–1875)
France, 19th century
oil on fabric
Framed: 68 x 59.7 x 10.8 cm (26 3/4 x 23 1/2 x 4 1/4 in.); Unframed: 46 x 38 cm (18 1/8 x 14 15/16 in.)
Bequest of Noah L. Butkin 1980.270
Location: not on view

Description

Millet and the other members of the Realist movement were renowned for not only producing realistic images, but for typically injecting their pictures with political, spiritual, or social messages. Sensitive to the human psyche and the rise of the bourgeoisie, Millet used a simple, almost monochromatic background to focus attention on the face of Monsieur Martin, a middle-class veterinarian and meat inspector. Indeed, Martin's beard, hair style, clothing, even his common French name, and the fact that he could afford portraits of himself and his wife (now lost) convey that he belonged to the prosperous middle class. This small portrait shows Millet's extraordinary skill as a painter. He depicted the highlights on Martin's face by adding patches of flat, unblended color, and some of the brushstrokes suggest the loose, quick movement of the artist's hands over the canvas.
  • Paris sale, Galerie Georges Petit, 22 May 1919 (lot 28, repr.), Portrait de M Martin, peint entre 1844 et 1848 (with a pendant portrait).
    Hamel, Lisieux. Etard, Lisieux. F. Cottin, Lisieux, by 1964.
    New York sale, Sotheby Parke-Bernet, 28 April 1977 (lot 156, repr.).
    Shepherd Gallery, New York.
    Bought May 1977 by Mr. and Mrs. Noah L. Butkin, Cleveland. Bequeathed to the CMA in 1980.
  • Argencourt, Louise d', and Roger Diederen. Catalogue of Paintings. Pt. 4. European Paintings of the 19th Century. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1974. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 440-441, Vol. II, no. 152
  • Year in Review: 1980. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (June 24-July 19, 1981).
    Cherbourg, Musée Thomas-Henry. Jean-François Millet (1964), no. 25.
    Paris, Musée Jacquemart-André. J.-F. Millet, le portraitiste et le dessinateur (1964-65), no. 1, (F. Cottin collection, Lisieux).
    Douvres la Délivrande. Réalistes et impressionnistes normands (1961), no. 115, 12 (repr.).
  • {{cite web|title=Monsieur Martin|url=false|author=Jean-François Millet|year=1840|access-date=23 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1980.270