'La Cabane Gardianne' by Yves Brayer (1974)
'La Cabane Gardianne', lithograph (1974), by Yves Brayer (1907 - 1990). Brayer loved the Camargue region of France and painted it widely. The Carmargue is a vast, swampy delta near Arles, very exotic, with tall marsh grasses where pink flamingos, black bulls and white horses roam freely. This image depicts a cowboy on horseback riding by the small cabana in the painting. Here, cowboys — called gardians — ride white horses on the beaches and herd black cattle, while flamingos wade in the shallow marshy waters. Dating back to the early 16th century, the gardians are a professional order of cowboys who protect and care for the herds of horses and black bulls that roam around the region. They're one of the oldest groups of cowboys in the world and their ancestors were probably the first American cowboys. Back in the 1600s, these gardians sailed to New Orleans, where they rode through the bayous of Louisiana and Texas, rounding up the cattle. This lithograph is framed with glass and is in good vintage condition. There is some slight fading commensurate with its age. It is signed in pencil by the artist himself and numbered 50/21/2.
About the Artist: Yves Brayer (1907 - 1990) was born in Versailles, France. Determined to be an artist from an early age, he set out for Paris in 1924, initially studying at the academies in Montparnasse, and from there he attended the École des Beaux-Arts. Whilst still a student he exhibited at the Salon d’Automne and the Salon des Indépendants, and in 1927 Brayer left Paris for Spain with the aid of a state grant to enable him to study the works of the Spanish Masters in the Prado.
On his return to Paris in 1934 he exhibited a collection of paintings inspired by his travels in Europe and Morocco to great acclaim. Having moved south to Cordes in the Tarn region of France after the War, Brayer then discovered the area which was to have the greatest artistic influence on his work: Provence. He was enchanted by the diverse and architectural forms of the Alpilles mountains, and by the vast expanse of the Camargue region with its ubiquitous white horses and black bulls. From then on he spent several months each year working in Provence. He also made several trips to Mexico, Egypt, Iran, Greece, Russia, USA and Japan where he was quick to grasp the unique rhythm and light of each country.
A large collection of Yves Brayer’s paintings are on permanent display both at the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Cordes, in the Salle Yves Brayer and at the Musée Yves Brayer in Les Baux de Provence, as well as various museums in France and elsewhere. Yves Brayer died in 1990.
Dimensions with frame:
H 46 cm
W 61.5 cm
Dimensions without frame:
H 44.5 cm
W 60 cm