Details

Name

Adrien Beugniet

Occupation

Frame-maker; painting dealer; print publisher and dealer (until 1878); wood-gilding (from 1861); dealer in bronzes and objets d’art (1862–78); painting restorer (from 1862)

Description

Adrien Beugniet is part of the provenance/ownership history of Sir William Burrell's collection for the work entitled 'Laveuses au bord de la Touques', also known as 'Le Pont de Deauville – Laveuses', by Eugene Boudin, and 'Peasant’s House/s, Fontainebleau' (Maison de paysans a Fontainebleau) by Camille Corot.

In 1847 Adrien Beugniet established his picture-frame making business at 18 rue Laffitte in Paris. By 1851, with his business expanding and diversifying into art dealing (which included paintings, bronzes and objets d’art) and publishing and dealing in prints, he moved to larger premises at 10 rue Laffitte. Beugniet was a specialist in, and expert on, artists such as Eugene Delacroix, with whom he had regular business dealings, and members of the Barbizon School, subsequently promoting and exhibiting more modern artists such as Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro and Edouard Manet.

Discussing art and socialising with a variety of artists on a weekly basis in his apartment allowed him, by using his own very particular judgement, to discover and nurture new talents, even advising Degas and Pissarro to paint on fans, as small decorative items were easier to sell than paintings. However, Pissarro was of the opinion that Beugniet’s artistic discussions centred too much on the prices.

A more altruistic side to Beugniet’s nature was attested to by the author Marcel Proust who recounted that during the 1851 riots in Paris, his life and that of Manet’s was saved by Beugniet sheltering them in his shop during a cavalry charge.

By 1862, he had added painting restoring to his other accomplishments; however, the 1878 business directory (the 'Annuaire et Almanach du Commerce') does not show him, at that date, as dealing in prints, bronzes and objets d’art, although he was still dealing in paintings as the Boudin painting, 'Le Pont de Deauville – Laveuses' made about 1883–87 has his gallery stamp on the back. He was still framing and varnishing paintings for artists up until his son, Georges Albert Felix Beugniet, succeeded to the business in 1893. Beugniet fils specialised in the flower paintings of Madeleine Lemaire (whose work was much admired by Proust) to such an extent that his premises were likened to those of a florist’s.

Sir William Burrell purchased two works which had passed through Beugniet’s hands at some time in their history.