Technical information
- Title : Ordener Market
- Date : 1951
- Technique : Oil on canvas
- Dimensions : 114 × 146 cm
- Location : Private collection
Biographical / historical context
With Ordener Market, Breuillaud approached, in 1951, a market scene on a more ambitious scale, in the Rue Ordener district (Paris). The large format allowed him to deploy a choral composition, where observation of the real is coupled with an orchestration of rhythms and colours.
Formal / stylistic description
The surface is crossed by a network of trunks and branches that segments space into compartments, within which schematised silhouettes are set. Figures, reduced to simple volumes, answer one another through gestures and postures, while zones of light—notably a bright core at the centre—structure depth.
The palette, dominated by greens, reds and ochres, is enlivened by lighter touches that play like reflections on foliage and clothing.
Comparative analysis / related works
By its theme, the work extends the Paris markets of 1951 (At the Market, Rue Lepic Market), but amplifies the effect of a “decor-architecture”: the vegetal network becomes a true visual framework. The move to a large format intensifies the synthetic dimension of Breuillaud’s language, privileging relations of masses and colours over descriptive narration.
Justification of dating and attribution
The date 1951 is consistent with the identified market cycle of that year and with the maturation of a style based on chromatic facets and simplified figures. The signature “Breuillaud”, visible at lower right on the reproduction, confirms the attribution.
Provenance / exhibitions / publications
Private collection.
© Bruno Restout — Catalogue raisonné André Breuillaud