Edouard Cortes - Country Life: Scenes in Normandy & Brittany

While most people are familiar with Edouard Cortes’ glorious Parisian Street scenes, very few actually know that he also painted many landscapes and interiors in the Normandy and Brittany areas. In 1925 he and his family moved back to Lagny – the small town, just east of Paris, where he was born and grew up. Lagny had a rich, artistic heritage and was an area that many artists visited to gather inspiration including Lebasque, Luce and Pissarro.

It was during his return to Lagny that he became active in the Union des Beaux-Arts de Lagny and was elected its first president. The Union’s first exhibition was held in 1927 and Cortès continued to exhibit there until the late 1930’s. Cortès also set up a second studio in the town of Ouistreham in the Normandy area during this period.

These Realist works, painted from 1925 – 1945, capture the simple and quiet life of the countryside. They are tranquil and often feature a few figures going about their daily life. Like his Paris street scenes, these painting are created with impressionistic brushstrokes and bright colors; even when he paints his evening scenes, Cortès always adds a few of his signature colors – red, yellow and blue – in a window, shop sign or gas lantern.

In 1930 he exhibited Le Marché à Lagny at the Union des Beaux-Arts. The work depicted the busy market in the town of Lagny on a warm sunny day and was so popular that it was purchased by the city – where it is still displayed.

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