M. Laurent – Naïve Folk Art Hunting Scene with Horses & Hounds, 20th Century

M. Laurent – Naïve Folk Art Hunting Scene with Horses & Hounds, 20th Century

A wonderfully characterful 20th-century oil on canvas by the French painter Laurent, depicting a traditional country hunt with scarlet-coated riders on horseback following a lively pack of hounds through an expansive rural landscape.

Signed Laurent lower right, the painting is particularly appealing for its distinctive naïve handling. Horses, riders and hounds are rendered with simplified forms, flattened perspective and wonderfully direct brushwork, giving the composition a charm quite removed from the polished formality of conventional sporting art.

Across the landscape, five mounted riders make their way through the countryside, their brilliant scarlet coats providing striking points of colour amongst fresh greens, ochres and the softly painted blue-grey sky.

In the foreground, a rider on a chestnut horse follows the hounds at pace, while immediately beyond, another rider on a substantial white horse negotiates a fallen tree beside the water.

Further mounted figures appear across the middle distance on white, grey and brown horses, creating a surprisingly effective sense of movement across the landscape.

But it is perhaps the pack of hounds that gives the painting its greatest charm.

Predominantly white and individually marked with chestnut and darker patches, the hounds race enthusiastically through the countryside in small groups. Each has been constructed from remarkably economical brushstrokes, yet together they immediately convey the energy and excitement of the hunt.

A Naïve Interpretation of the Hunt

Rather than approaching the subject with the anatomical precision traditionally associated with British sporting painting, Laurent has interpreted the hunt in an altogether more instinctive manner.

Perspective is deliberately flattened. Proportions shift throughout the composition. Riders are reduced almost to silhouettes, while horses and hounds are described through strong outlines and confident areas of colour.

It is precisely this unconventional handling that makes the painting so appealing.

The scarlet coats of the huntsmen form a repeating rhythm across the landscape, while the pale horses echo the predominantly white bodies of the hounds below.

A stream winds through the foreground, crossed by fallen timber, while a slender bare tree rises dramatically at the left of the composition. Beyond, softly described woodland and distant countryside disappear towards a broad horizon beneath the atmospheric sky.

There is a wonderful sense of storytelling without unnecessary detail.

Seen closely, individual passages are almost abstract in their simplicity. Stepping back, they resolve into a remarkably lively country scene filled with horses, riders and hounds.

It is an immensely decorative example of 20th-century naïve sporting art.

Horses & Hounds

The individual animals are particularly appealing.

A chestnut horse dominates the foreground, shown at full stretch as its scarlet-coated rider follows the hounds.

Nearby, a large white horse carefully negotiates the fallen timber, while further chestnut, grey and white horses progress across the landscape behind.

Each has its own slightly eccentric proportions and character — an important part of the painting's naïve quality rather than an attempt at conventional equestrian realism.

The hounds are equally charming.

Painted predominantly in white with warm chestnut and dark markings, they move across the composition in small groups. Some follow the pack while others appear to be enthusiastically choosing their own route through the landscape.

Their repeated forms create a sense of movement across the lower half of the painting and provide a wonderful counterpoint to the mounted figures above.

Laurent

Relatively little biographical information concerning the 20th-century French painter M. Laurent appears to have been published.

The artist is nevertheless recorded within international art-market databases as a 20th-century French painter, with works having appeared at auction.

Particularly interesting in relation to the present painting are recorded works entitled Retour de chasse (Return from the Hunt) and Retour de chasse au faisan (Return from Pheasant Hunting).

Signature

Clearly signed Laurent.M to the lower right of the painted surface.

The signature is painted in a pale tone against the darker foreground and remains clearly legible.

Condition

Presented in good vintage condition with an attractive painted surface and considerable texture throughout.

Individual brushstrokes and areas of more heavily applied paint remain clearly visible across the horses, hounds, figures and landscape and form an integral part of the artist's naïve technique.

There are minor surface marks, variations and imperfections consistent with age and the nature of the work.

The canvas remains mounted upon its wooden stretcher and presents very well overall.

The dark-stained wooden frame displays rubbing, small marks, knocks and age-related wear, with warmer underlying tones visible in places along the moulded edges.

No attempt has been made to disguise the natural age and character of either the painting or frame.

Measurements

Height: 58 cm / 22.8 inches
Width: 68 cm / 26.8 inches
Depth: 2.5 cm / 1 inch
Weight: 2.1 kg / 4.6 lbs