| Original Artist | Pierre Billet |
|---|---|
| Code# | 18454 |
| Available in | Medium Quality High Quality |
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Pierre Billet
(1837 Cantin, France - 1922 Paris, France)
A nineteenth century painter and etcher Pierre Billet studied art in Paris under Jules and Emile Breton. He first exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1867 and was a frequent contributor for the following forty years. He was awarded both third and second class medals during the 1870's and 1880's and he also received prizes from competitions in London, Glasgow and New York.
In both his paintings and original etchings Billet concentrated upon scenes of rustic life, particularly scenes of working fishermen and laborers. Les Laveuses, published by Hamerton in 1880, is a fine example of his art in this genre.
Today the etchings and paintings of Pierre Billet will be found in the collections of the South Kensington Museum, London, the Luxembourg Museum, Paris, and municipal collections in Lille and Bordeaux.
Excerpt from a letter of Vincent van Gogh to his brother Theo, 5 November 1882:
"To change the subject, do you know whose work has impressed me deeply? I saw reproductions of Julien Dupré. One represented two mowers; the other, a beautiful large wood engraving from Monde Illustré, a peasant woman taking a cow into the meadow. It seemed to me excellent work, very energetic and faithfully done. It resembles, for instance, Pierre Billet perhaps, or Butin."
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