Henri Le Sidaner
(1862–1939)

Henri Le Sidaner Biography
(1862–1939)

French Impressionist painter Henri Le Sidaner was born in 1862 in Port Louis, Mauritius, before his family moved in 1870 to Dunkirk. He studied at the École des Beaux-Arts under Alexandre Cabanel. In 1885, Le Sidener relocated to the artist colony of Étaples and was inspired by Claude Monet and his “en plein air” works while searching for new perspectives. The Côte d’Opale would capture his interest for the next nine years, depicting its coasts and towns in various works.

Le Sidaner is considered one of the earliest interpreters of the Intimist movement, depicting interiors, street corners and gardens using distinctly Impressionist techniques, which came to prominence at the turn of the twentieth century. Le Sidaner would use the uneven, dappling effect of Impressionist brushstrokes to diffuse light and create atmospheric effects reminiscent of twilight. He exhibited these works at the Salon des Artistes Français and the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. Around 1900, Le Sidaner’s work took on a symbolist nature as he began to paint the silhouettes of figures in the distance, and soon after, entirely abstained from depicting the human form; instead, he focused on the private, provincial landscapes of Beauvais, Chartres and his home in Gerberoy. He would paint these locales at various times of day or periods of the year.

In 1930, Le Sidaner became a professor at the Académie des Beaux-Arts before becoming president in 1937. His works are in the collections of major public institutions such as the Art Institute of Chicago, the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, and the Tate Gallery in London.