Collection

A Meadow in the Bourbonnais, Morning (Une Prairie du Bourbonnais, par un effet de matin)

Henri-Joseph Harpignies

Brooklyn Museum photograph

Object Label

This large landscape of central France was popular at the 1876 Paris Salon for its depiction of the country’s beauty, bounty, and ageless traditions—including the ancient custom of laundering in the region’s rivers. Such images were particularly reassuring at a time when France was still reeling from the humiliating defeat of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71.

Caption

Henri-Joseph Harpignies (French, 1819–1916). A Meadow in the Bourbonnais, Morning (Une Prairie du Bourbonnais, par un effet de matin), 1876. Oil on canvas, 44 × 66 in. (111.8 × 167.6 cm) frame: 52 1/4 × 75 × 4 1/4 in. (132.7 × 190.5 × 10.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mrs. Thomas F. Walsh, 55.18. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum)

Gallery

Not on view

Title

A Meadow in the Bourbonnais, Morning (Une Prairie du Bourbonnais, par un effet de matin)

Date

1876

Geography

Place made: France

Medium

Oil on canvas

Classification

Painting

Dimensions

44 × 66 in. (111.8 × 167.6 cm) frame: 52 1/4 × 75 × 4 1/4 in. (132.7 × 190.5 × 10.8 cm)

Signatures

Signed and dated lower left: "h j harpignies. 1876."

Credit Line

Gift of Mrs. Thomas F. Walsh

Accession Number

55.18

Frequent Art Questions

  • Tell me more.

    Landscape painting was very popular in the mid 19th century, it was very marketable. Upper middle class families in Western Europe were interested in displaying these idyllic images in their homes.
    Peaceful images of nature also offered a visual escape from any troubles of reality. The artist even titled this work with an outdated name for the region (Bourbonnais is now known as Auvergne) to recall the past.

  • The description talks about the humiliating defeat in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870. I am unfamiliar with that event could you tell me about it?

    The Franco-Prussian War, as the name suggests, was fought between France and a Prussian led coalition, which is now part of Germany. It lasted for about a year from 1870-71. France's defeat also ended their reign as the chief influence of Europe and led to the unification of Germany.
    France began the war because Prussia backed Spain's new king and the French were concerned that an alliance between the two countries would be too powerful and thus threatened France's position of power. It turns out they were right.

  • Where in France is this? Meaning, where is this near that I might know.

    Bourbonnais was the name of a province in central France; the capital of the region was the city of Moulins. It was roughly the same area of the department of Allier today. The name Bourbonnais was removed in 1790 when the French Revolution removed the Bourbon monarchy which was named for the region. Harpignies means to recall the past by using the antiquated name in his title.

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Artists and makers

Henri-Joseph Harpignies

4 works in the collection