Louis Thevenet

The harmonium is a recurring motif in Louis Thévenet’s work. Here, the instrument, which he loved to play, forms a silent, expectant presence within a modest interior. Behind the scene’s apparent simplicity, the artist surprises the viewer with a succession of viewpoints that unfold one after another, from the front room to the window at the back. The power of Thévenet’s composition stems from the way he perfectly aligns the edge of the door with the edge of the picture plane. The vertical lines and the shape of the door punctuate the composition and are repeated twice in the background. These same forms are further echoed in the window and in the frames hanging on the wall. On the other side of the painting, the chest of drawers is cropped by a quarter, just like the window in the background. The subtle lighting of the scene, a legacy of his experience as an en plein air painter, is marked by the superb reflection of the street facades in the glass of the open door in the middle ground. The wear and tear of the floor allows both the absorption and reflection of light. The shoes beneath the wardrobe break the silence, bearing witness to a human presence, even as the two candlesticks on the chest of drawers reflect the stillness of the void. Thévenet would become one of the leading figures of Brabant Fauvism, though without the raw colours. He combines an understanding of the subtlety of colour, form and atmosphere with a certain rural folklore.

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