ÉDOUARD DETAILLE

French, 1848-1912

BIOGRAPHY
“At the age of 17 Jean Baptiste Édouard Detaille entered Meissonnier's (1815–1891) studio, then went to Spain and Algeria. He returned to Paris just as the Franco-Prussian war broke out and served in the Paris area with a mobile unit.

Édouard Detaille was made a Chevalier of the Légion d'Honneur in 1872, an Officier in 1881 and a Commandeur in 1897. He became a member of the Institute in 1892.

Detaille quickly became known for his scenes of military life, treated with a lifelike precision verging on trompe-l'oeil. He avoided any idealistic heroism and painted the horror and violence of war. Initially he worked with Alphonse de Neuville, painting with him the monumental Panorama of the Battle of Champigny and Panorama of the Battle of Rezonville, the latter 400 feet (120 metres) long and 50 feet (15 metres) high. This painting, which depicts an episode that took place on 16 August 1870 during the Franco-Prussian war, was exhibited in Paris and Vienna on a circular frame in order to bring the viewers into the action. It was divided into several sections and sold at auction in 1896. Among his decorative paintings are those he did at the Pantheon and the Hôtel de Ville, Paris: The Conquerors, Salute to the Wounded, and The Victims of Duty.

He first exhibited at the Salon de Paris in 1867 with In Meissonnier's Studio and continued to show there until 1884, winning a third-class medal in 1870, a second-class in 1872, the Salon medal in 1888 with Dream, which was popularised by an engraving, and the Grand Prix at the Paris Exposition Universelle of 1889 with The Battle of Rezonville” (Benezit, Dictionary of Artists, Paris, 2006).

Museum Collections:
Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, MN
Musée d’Orsay, Paris
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA
The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, MD

Mark Murray Fine Paintings is a New York gallery specializing in buying and selling 19th century and early 20th century artwork. 

Please contact us if you are interested in selling your Édouard Detaille paintings or other artwork from the 19th century and early 20th century. 

ÉDOUARD DETAILLE
Paintings for sale