Technical information
- Title : Notre‑Dame de Paris
- Date : 1921
- Technique : Oil on canvas
- Dimensions : 60 × 70 cm
- Location : State-owned, Inventory FNAC 7621
Biographical / historical context
1921 corresponds to one of the earliest years of Breuillaud’s documented pictorial activity. The choice of a Parisian monument—stable and strongly characterised—answers a double need: to practise the construction of architectural masses and to test the light of a city sky. The cathedral, a major motif within the French pictorial tradition, becomes here a pretext for atmospheric study rather than a narrative subject.
Formal / stylistic description
The composition is dominated by the mass of Notre‑Dame: the two towers emerge in a pale haze, darkened just enough to retain their weight without closing the scene. The broad grey‑blue sky carries a cold, diffused light that envelops volumes rather than cutting them out. A cluster of trees at centre, tinged with warmer nuances, softens the architecture and mediates between stone and air. The open foreground receives a few figures indicated with a rapid hand; they act as measures of scale and signs of life. The touch remains light, with little impasto, and the palette stays within warm greys, ochres and muted greens, punctuated by discreet bluish accents.
Comparative analysis / related works
The work continues the early Paris views—such as *Rue Frédéric‑Sauton*—through the same pursuit of an enveloping atmosphere and filtered light. Compared with works from the mid‑1920s, it shows a finer material and a still gentle modelling: the construction remains descriptive, without an advanced will toward deformation or synthesis.
Justification of dating and attribution
The 1921 dating is confirmed by the cautious handling, the light material and the atmospheric treatment inherited from late Impressionism. No stylistic or material element suggests a different date.
Provenance / exhibitions / publications
Purchased by the State from the artist in 1922. FNAC inventory 7621. On deposit at the Centre Hospitalier Régional de Poitiers since 14 February 1922.