PISSARRO CAMILLE: (1830-1903)

PISSARRO CAMILLE: (1830-1903)

`I don´t see anyone, I am working hard on 6 paintings at the same time´

 

PISSARRO CAMILLE: (1830-1903) French Impressionist Painter, often regarded as the father of the painting movement. An excellent and interesting content A.L.S., `C. Pissarro´, three pages, 8vo, mourning paper, Hotel du Louvre, Paris, 23rd January 1898, to his wife Julie, in French. Pissarro, in his usual careful and clean handwriting, refers to their son Lucien, and states in part `Comment peux-tu croire que j'écris à Lucien à propos des affaires qui passionnent la France et l'Europe entière ; je t'assure que je m'en suis bien gardé, mais Lucien lit les journaux anglais qui sont très renseignés, c´est justement pour lui tirer toute inquiétude que je lui ai écrit et comme il me demandait des journaux, je lui ai envoyé quelques uns, il est impossible de l'empêcher de savoir ce qui se passe, du reste, je lui ait dit qu'il n'y avait rien à craindre, qu'au fond, c'est une affaire d'élection´ (`How can you believe that I write to Lucien about matters that interest and passionate France and the whole of Europe; I assure you that I took good care of it, but Lucien reads the English newspapers which are very well informed, it is precisely to relieve him of all concerns that I wrote to him and as he asked me for newspapers, I sent him some, it is impossible to prevent him from knowing what is happening, for the rest, I told him that there was nothing to fear, that basically, it is a matter of election´) Pissarro further refers to his own works, saying `Quant à moi, je ne m´en occupe guère, du reste je ne vois personne, je pioche à 6 tableaux que je mène de front, je ne vois ce que tu peux me reprocher. Est-ce d'avoir signé la protestation que Mirbeau m'a présentée.. voyons!... non pas de reproche, ce serait par trop absurde. Du reste tu peux être fort tranquille je reste dans mon coin du matin au soir´ (`As for me, I don´t care much about it, besides I don´t see anyone, I am working hard on 6 paintings at the same time, I don´t see what you can blame me for. Is it for having signed the protest that Mirbeau presented to me... come on!... no reproach, that would be far too absurd. Besides, you can be very calm, I stay in my corner from morning to evening´) To a postscriptum Pissarro asks his wife `C´est donc toi qui a donné mon adresse à Truffaut? Il est venu ce matin en plein travail…´ (`So it was you who gave my address to Truffaut? He came this morning when I was in the middle of my work...´) The letter bears to the fourth page a black and red pencil unassigned drawing, showing a young boy with sad grimace and red cheeks. VG

 

Lucien Pissarro (1863-1944) eldest son of Camille Pissarro and also Painter. He lived in London since 1897.