'The Young Shepherd with Pan Pipe' by Joseph-Marius Avy (circa 1920s)
SKU 2482
'The Young Shepherd with Pan Pipe', oil on panel, by Joseph-Marius Avy (circa 1920s). A sensuous and accomplished Arcadian study depicting a young male figure — lithe, athletic, dreamlike — reclines amid lush Mediterranean foliage in a moment of arrested movement, raising a golden pan pipe to his lips. His gaze is upturned and dreaming, as though absorbed in a music not yet played. A garland of dark leaves crowns his hair; roses bloom in the greenery behind him against a sliver of bright summer sky.
The artwork invokes the spirit of classical mythology — the pipe, the wreath and the wild setting all speak to the Arcadian tradition — though Avy renders his subject as an ideally beautiful young man rather than a hybrid creature, like a faun. The figure is painted with confident authority, the musculature modelled in warm, sculptural flesh tones, set against a richly worked background of deep greens built up with vigorous, Impressionist-inflected brushwork. The contrast between the smooth luminosity of the skin and the textured density of the foliage gives the panel an almost jewel-like intensity. The painting is in good overall condition having recently undergone a treatment by an art restoration specialist. It is newly framed with a linen slip and signed in the lower left hand. Please enjoy the many photos accompanying this listing. Upon request a video will be provided.
Dimensions with Frame:
H 46 cm / 18.1"
W 37.6 cm / 14.8"
Dimensions without Frame:
H 33.5 cm /13.2"
W 25.5 cm / 10"
About the Artist: Joseph-Marius Avy (1871-1939) was born in Marseille and trained in Paris under Léon Bonnat and Albert Maignan. He became particularly celebrated during the Belle Époque for his large-scale depictions of Parisian high society. He exhibited regularly at the Salon des Artistes Français from 1900 to 1933, winning the Marie Bashkirtseff Prize in 1900 and receiving the Diplôme d'Honneur in 1937. He was appointed Chevalier of the Légion d'Honneur, later promoted to Commander. Works by Avy are held in the Musée du Petit Palais in Paris, the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille, and the Musée de la Piscine in Roubaix. His auction record includes paintings reaching 8,000 euros.