Victor Dubreuil (American/French, B.C. 1842–1946) Grapes on a Barn Board Signed 'V.Dubreuil' bottom left, oil on canvas 7 1/2 x 9 1/2 in. (19.1 x 24.1cm) PROVENANCE: The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio. By descent in the Butler family. Hirschl & Adler Galleries, Inc., New York, New York. Private Collection, Ohio. LITERATURE: Dorinda Evans, "Toward Understanding Victor Dubreuil," in American Art, vol. 36, no. 3, Fall 2012, pp. 66-85, fig. 14, illustrated p. 79. NOTE: Little is known about Victor Dubreuil. Born in 1842 to middle-class parents in Ayron, near Paris, he first embraced a career in finance, working as a clerk in one of the capital's banks. He later left for New York in 1888 after being linked to a monetary scandal that involved forgery and misappropriation of funds. Upon his arrival in the United States, Dubreuil applied for citizenship and found short-term employment as a stable boy in Manhattan. It was there, during his free-time, that he taught himself to paint landscapes, portraits, genre scenes and still lifes, particularly trompe l'oeil paintings. Soon, he made a name for himself by selling his highly-praised illusionary representations of banknotes, US bills and silver coins, often rivalling with fellow artists John Haberle (1856-1933) and William Harnett (1848-1892). Although his technique may not have been as refined as such established artists, and his paintings lacked a certain polish, Dubreuil drew admiration for his inventiveness, and for introducing entertaining (sometimes complex) allegories that called the attention of the viewer, and at the same time spoke to his socialist sympathies, and denunciation of capitalism, which he considered alienating. The present work fits within this theme, as it relates to a monetary transaction and involves the viewer. As Dorinda Evans puts it "composed of a few coins struck to a wood plank and a cluster of grapes, it is a bizarre and meager offering with no known visual precursors." In fact, it illustrates one of François Rabelais' (1483-1553) morales, which Dubreuil knew very well since he was working on an annotated version of all the works by the French humanist (then considered the greatest author France had ever produced, whose writing contained endless hidden messages and many possible interpretations). In this satire about the foolishness of rushing to war, Rabelais introduces a group of bakers, taking their flat buns into the city to sell them on the market. On their way, they are approached by shepherds harvesting grapes, who ask to buy some of the buns, as the combination of flat bread and grapes was considered to be a "celestial" meal. In exchange for the buns, the shepherds offer a fair price and even some grapes, to which the bakers respond with rudeness, calling the shepherds belittling names. As both sides become more heated, the once-small dispute evolves into a full-on war. Through this painting, Dubreuil positions himself as an honest shepherd, laying out onto the canvas some coins and a cluster of grape in exchange for a fair price from his viewer, that will enable him to survive. The purpose is not to entice us with an alluring representation of overflowing bills that would make us instantly rich, but to help us understand the difficult status of a living artist, constantly struggling to make ends meet and hoping for brighter days. As Evans further explains: "with this painting, the impoverished Dubreuil, who had become versatile in order to support himself, seems to be symbolically attempting to trade what he has to offer. Unlike his money pictures however, this scene would not be widely viewed as tempting. In fact, the meagerness of this offering, and its subject, merely bread, in order to live, is the point." To some extent, the painting functions as a corrective to the money barrel pieces that Dubreuil executed early on. Not only does it encourage Christian charity, but it also depicts Dubreuil as a respectable artist who can be trusted with the money he is given. Luckily for the artist, Rablais said that the prayers of those who ask for things in moderation never go unanswered... See More