artist
- The son of the great second generation Impressionist, Henri Martin, Jacques Martin-Ferrieres was born in 1893. He became known as a painter of portraits and landscapes after periods of study under Cormon, Ernest Laurent, and last but not least, Henri Martin.
- He exhibited regularly in Paris at the Salon des Artistes Français and was able to submit work without vetting. At the Salon he received a honourable mention in 1920, a silver medal in 1923, and a travel scholarship in 1924. He received the national prize in 1925, before finally being awarded a gold medal in 1928. He was also awarded The Legay-Lebrun prize (Prix de L'Institut). In 1965 he exhibited in Paris in an exhibition of Venetian landscapes and snow landscapes.
- His style can be summarised briefly by his use of thick impasto which created a surface of great vitality and a wonderful basis for his experimentation with the effects of light.
Description
Jacques Martin-Ferrières was the son of the well-known painter Henri Martin (1860-1943) who provided the early foundation for his art studies. However, he seems to have altered the spelling of his name to distinguish himself from his father. He was fortunate to study with some of the brightest lights of the Post-Impressionist movement including Fernand Cormon, E. Laurent and most influential, Henri Martin. A retrospective of his work in 1965 confirmed his reputation as a master of the scintillating effects of light, from his Venetian scenes to his landscapes of winter scenes. His themes seemed to have been limited to landscapes and still-lifes.
His career seems to have been marked by early successes, including being considered “hors-concours” at the Salon des Artistes Francais meaning that his work was accepted for exhibition without having to go through the usual competitive approval process. He was awarded a medaille d’argent in 1923 and a ‘bourse de voyage’ in 1924. In 1925 he was awarded the prix National and in 1928 the gold medal and the Legay-Lebrun prize (Prix de l’Institut).
provenance
Private collection, France
