The triumph of autumn - Lot 13

The triumph of autumn Antoine CARON (1521-1599), attributed to The Triumph of Autumn Canvas H_104 cm L_179 cm (Old restorations). Provenance : - (Possibly) Alexandre Olivier (1568-1607), Paris - (Possibly) By inheritance to his widow Mme Alexandre Olivier, née Marguerite de Héry - (Possibly) By whom sold in 1612 to his son Aubin Olivier (died 1620), Paris - (Possibly) By inheritance to his sons Alexandre Olivier (b. 1614) and Aubin Olivier (b. 1615) - (Possibly) Simon de Vaulx, Paris, in 1651 - Private collection, Paris, before 1939 - Riverside Antiques, Hungerford, Berkshire, in September 1964 (as Ecole de Fontainebleau) - Private collection, England - By whom sold Moore, Allen & Innocent Cirencester, April 28, 2011, lot 306 (as Ecole de Fontainebleau) - Christie's New York, October 15, 2020, lot 3 (as Antoine Caron); - Sotheby's Paris, hotel Lambert sale, Oct. 13, 2022, no. 682. Bibliography : - Antoine Caron, le théâtre de l'histoire, Ecouen, Musée National de la Renaissance, under the scientific direction of Matteo Gianeselli, quoted p. 210. Literature: - G. Wildenstein, 'Inventaire des tableaux de Simon de Vaulx (1651)', in Gazette des Beaux-Arts, XLIX, February 1957, p. 112, under no. 49 - J. Ehrmann, 'Artistes franco-flamands de l'École de Fontainebleau et actes notariaux sur la famille d'Antoine Caron', in Bulletin de la Société de l'Histoire de l'Art Français, 1972, p. 74 and 76-77 - J. Ehrmann, L'École de Fontainebleau, 1972, p. 35, under no. 35 - J. Ehrmann, Antoine Caron: Peintre des Fêtes et des Masques, 1986, p. 107 - E. Leutrat, 'De Fontainebleau à Paris: Les Saisons d'Antoine Caron. Images du Temps, du Roi et des Arts pour un médailleur', in the proceedings of the symposium Peindre en France à la Renaissance. 2. Fontainebleau et son rayonnement, Geneva 2012, p. 63 - F. Hueber, Antoine Caron peintre de ville, peintre de Cour, 1521-1599, Tours and Rennes 2018, p. 268 - The Triumph of Autumn should be seen in the context of several works associated with Antoine Caron, depicting the Triumphs of the Four Seasons. Long dispersed, these works have gradually reappeared. Research by Ms. Jurgens has suggested that they may have been commissioned by Aubin I Olivier, or may have formed part of the collection of his son, Alexandre Olivier. Indeed, an after-death inventory of Aubin I Olivier, drawn up in 1620, mentions four paintings by Caron representing the Seasons, inherited from his mother, Alexandre's widow. While the iconographic coherence between these works is undeniable, doubts remain as to whether they originally belonged to the same ensemble. Another series of Triumphs of the Seasons appears in the inventory of Simon de Vaulx, perfumer to Queen Marie de Médicis, in 1651. It is possible that this series belonged to the Olivier family and was acquired by de Vaulx, although this cannot be confirmed with certainty. Although the full attribution of these paintings to Antoine Caron remains open to debate, it is generally accepted that Le Triomphe de l'Hiver and Le Triomphe de l'Été are by the master. The former belonged to Jean Ehrmann before being sold in Paris in 1992 (Couturier & de Nicolaÿ sale, December 15, 1992), while the latter was sold by Christie's in New York in 2003, at a sale that also included Le Printemps, whose attribution to Caron is more uncertain. Against this backdrop, the attribution of Triomphe de l'Automne should be treated with caution. However, its identical dimensions to those of the winter triumph L'Hiver and the summer triumph L'Été reinforce the idea that it belongs to the same series. Its iconography, in perfect harmony with the other Seasons, bears witness to an elaborate symbolism in tune with the philosophical and literary preoccupations of late 16th-century French scholars. It features a characteristic two-plan composition: in the background, palatial architecture, and in the foreground, a triumphal procession celebrating Autumn, dominated by the theme of vines and wine, emblematic of the harvest season. In the center, Pan, drunk and carried by a donkey, is accompanied by maenads and followed by fauns wearing wine-related attributes. At the far right of the composition, Dionysus, mounted on a heron-drawn chariot and holding a cornucopia, brings the procession to a close. Expert : Cabinet Turquin