O’REILLYS Fine Jewellery, Watches & Silver Auction Timed Online Auction, Starting 25th May 2022 at 1pm

4 N A T U R A L I S M A N D J Bastian Lepage Jules Bastian Lepage was born in 1848 in Damvillers, France. He was a well-known painter, sculptor and printmaker working mostly in the style of Naturalism. Naturalism, in the world of fine ar t, refers to a style which aims to evoke the pure and beautiful aesthetics of life.To depict nature and this includes people, with the minimal amount of interpretation or distor tion. It emerged as a style in the early 19th century in Great Britain and became popular across the continent within a shor t space of time. It sought to steer away from previous classical traditions of painting which altered both figures and landscapes to create a more idealized and stylized picture. Like almost all movements in ar t, it reflects the mood of society during that time. The impact of the industrial revolutions in Europe were an impor tant factor creating this new true-to-life style. Not to dissimilar from our technological revolution people became aware of their sudden disconnection with nature as cities and mass production consumed their lives. Thus, ‘naturalism’ a term coined by famous French writer Emile Zola was a way for ar tists and writers to help society feel as though they were reconnecting with the natural world. Bastian Lepage was first taught to paint by his father. In 1867 he went to Paris to study at Ecole des Beaux-ar ts and was one of the top students in his class. In 1870 he was called to fight in the Franco-Prussian war, and returned home after getting wounded.About a decade or so after, Lepage reached critical acclaim for a painting of his grandfather which won him a medal at the renowned Paris Salon. TIMED ONLINE AUCTION OF FINE JEWELLERY, WATCHES & SILVER • WEDNESDAY, 25th MAY 2022 AT 1PM