Paul-Desire Trouillebert (1829-1900)

Paul Desire Trouillebert, an almost exact contemporary of Stanislas Lepine (1835 1892) was with him the most distinguished of Camille Corot's followers.

Trouillebert was born in Paris and studied under Jean Jalabert (b.1815) a painter of historical scenes, genre and portraits. He himself did battle scenes and portraits but was, and is, best known for his paintings of nudes and landscapes, a particularly notable nude being exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1882.

As a landscape painter Trouillebert owed much to Corot both in terms of subject matter, riverbanks and woodland and in terms of a silvery light, which frequently suffused his work. A painting in the collection of Alexander Dumas' son was mistakenly taken to be a major work by Corot; such was the similarity of their work. However, Trouillebert was no mere Corot copyist, of which there were legion, his range was considerable from the silvery toned landscape with perhaps a solitary figure, to a broadly painted scene with vibrant forceful color.

Geographically, his range was extensive, subject matter including views of the Seine, Loire, Brittany, the Charantes and La Rochelle. Paul Desire Trouillebert was a popular, prolific and highly regarded artist in his lifetime, an indication of his reputation being that Edgar Degas, painter and a distinguished collector, was the owner of "Bords de la Seine".

He was widely collected in his lifetime and has been throughout the 20th Century, the renowned U.S. industrialist Andrew Carnegie counting a landscape in his collection. His works can be found in museums in Le Puy; Mulhouse; Reims and Saumur.