Eugène Galien-Laloue (1854–1941) was a French artist of French-Italian parents and was born in Paris 1854. He was a populariser of street scenes, usually painted in autumn or winter.
His paintings of the early 1900s accurately represent the era in which he lived: a happy, bustling Paris, la Belle Époque, with horse-drawn carriages, trolley cars and its first omnibuses. Galien-Laloue's works are valued not only for their contribution to 20th-century art, but for the actual history, which they document. He also painted the landscapes of Normandy and Seine-et-Marne, as well as military scenes he was commissioned to produce in 1914. The Republic of France selected Galien-Laloue to work as a 'war artist,' both during the Franco-Prussian War and World War I, chiefly in watercolour.
He was born in 1854 in Montmartre, the eldest of nine children. His father, Charles, died when he was sixteen years old, after which point his mother found him a job at the local notary. Quitting his job and faking his name in 1871, he left for his military duty, which led him through the end of the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-1871. By then he had decided to become a painter. In 1874 he was employed by the French Railway lines as an illustrator, depicting the rail track that was being laid from Paris to the provinces. Concurrently he began painting the surrounding landscapes as well.
He exhibited for the first time in 1876 at the Museum of Reims. The following year he exhibited for the first time at the annual Parisian Salon. He preferred executing gouaches since they were less time consuming than oils, and brought comparable prices. His personality kept him at a distance from his contemporaries who were working in his same manner. He was more concerned with the sale of his paintings, of which he kept scrupulous notes but still sold each painting for the same price. He was an active participant in the annual Parisian Salons until 1889 where he exhibited two gouaches. After this point he took a five year sabbatical, and returned to the exhibiting in 1904.
As World War I broke out, he was exempt from military service because he had volunteered for the Franco-Prussian war. He was too old to take part in the war. Instead, he took to his canvas and depicted scenes of soldiers in the midst of battle. Laloue continued to paint until 1940, when he broke the arm with which he held his brush. Despite his reluctance to integrate himself with others, his paintings offer a record of late nineteenth and early twentieth century Paris, focusing not so much on the relationship between its citizens, but more so on the architectural aspects of the city. He moved out of Paris many times to depict the landscapes of Normandy and the surroundings of Barbizon, making his home for a short time in Fontainebleau. He had become very popular with both French and especially American artists and continued to paint the same scenes of Paris throughout his career. He died in his daughter’s house in Chérence, where they had taken refuge at the beginning of the Second World War, on April 18th, 1941.
Note: Dates were not found for his works, so they are shown in alphabetical order by title.
This is part 1 of a 5-part series on the works of Eugène Galien-Laloue:
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| A boat at the river bank oil on canvas 46.5 x 55.5 cm |
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| A bonfire by a woodland track oil on canvas 65.5 x 92.5 cm |
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| A bustling street market oil on canvas 34 x 46.5 cm |
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| A bustling street at l'Eglise de St-Germain-des-Prés, Paris pencil and gouache on paper 27.3 x 34.3 cm |
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| A busy day of the Quay Mégisserie, with the Sarah-Bernhardt Theatre, Paris watercolour and gouache on paper 18.5 x 31 cm |
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| A country lane oil on canvas laid down on panel 46 x 64.5 cm |
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| A la Place de la République ( neige ) gouache on paper 21.3 x 33.7 cm |
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| A la Place de la République gouache on paper 21.6 x 32.4 cm |
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| A Parisian street at dusk oil on panel 23.5 x 33.3 cm |
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| A ship on the shore oil on canvas 54.5 x 73 cm |
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| A stroll by the river oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm |
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| A View of Paris gouache on paper 41 x 56 cm |
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| Animation autour de la Porte Saint-Denis gouache 21.6 x 31.2 cm |
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| Animation sur le Pont Neuf sous la neige gouache on paper 25 x 43.4 cm |
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| Au bord de la Seine gouache on paper 39.4 x 58.4 cm |
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| Au bord de la Seine oil on canvas 48.3 x 63.5 cm |
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| Au Quai watercolour and gouache on paper 26 x45 cm |
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| Bateaux dans un port français oil on canvas laid down on board 21.6 x 37.8 cm |
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| Boats in the Harbour oil on canvas 33 x 40.6 cm |
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| Book vendors along the quays of the Seine, Paris gouache on paper 19 x 31 cm |
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| Boulevard animé à Paris gouache on paper 19 x 31 cm |
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| Boulevard de Bonne Nouvelle à Paris près de la porte Saint Martin gouache, pencil and ink on paper 18.5 x 31 cm |
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| Boulevard de Bonne-Nouvelle gouache and pen and ink on paper 24.5 x 33 cm |
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| Boulevard de la Madeleine pencil, watercolour and gouache on paper 23 x 32 cm |
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| Boulevard de Paris gouache |
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| Boulevard des Capucines, Kiosque à Journaux gouache 18.5 x 30.5 cm |
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| Boulevard Haussman gouache on board 20.3 x 30.5 cm |
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| Boulevard Parisien pencil and gouache on card 24.7 x 37.2 cm |
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| Boulevard Parisien, sous la neige gouache on paper 27 x 45.7 cm |
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| Boulevard Saint-Germaine, Paris pencil and gouache on paper 19 x 31 cm |
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| Bouquinistes, Quai de Tournelle, Paris gouache on paper 54.6 x 94.2 cm |
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| Bouquinistes, Quai Du Louvre, Paris pencil and gouache on paper 19.5 x 31 cm |
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| Bourse, Paris gouache |
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| By the Harbour oil on panel 22.8 x 30.4 cm |
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| By the River oil on canvas 38.1 x 45.7 cm |
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| Café parisien watercolour and gouache, pen and ink over pencil on paper 19.6 x 31.9 cm |
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| Chickens at a cottage oil on canvas 46 x 65.4 cm |
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| Chickens oil on canvas 33 x 46 cm |
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| Church of Saint Laurent, Paris watercolour on canvasboard 19 x 31.5 cm |
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| Church of Saint-Vincent de Paul, Rue Lafayette, Paris gouache on board 30.4 x 20.3 cm |
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| Coin à Montmarte, Paris pencil, watercolour and gouache on pape 19 x 31 cm |
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| Coucher de soleil sur la rivière oil on canvas laid down on board 28 x 38 cm |
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| Eglise St. Laurent, Paris pencil, watercolour and gouache on pape 19 x 31 cm |
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| Elegant Figures in a Street, Evening oil on canvas 40.6 x 33 cm |
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| Evening, Pont Neuf gouache |
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| Farmers before a village oil on canvas 32.5 x 46 cm |
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| Figures at the Madeleine, Paris gouache on paper 32.2 x 40.3 cm |
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| Figures at the Quai de Louvre, Paris gouache on paper 25.3 x 39.4 cm |
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| Figures in the snow by the Seine, Paris gouache on paper 18.7 x 30.7 cm |