Simeon Buchbinder, the pleasure of the dark
After a fairly classic career, a master's degree in financial engineering and a one-year trip to Japan, Nima Torbati began working with his father, a merchant specializing in classic furniture, who had been located in the Vernaison market for 30 years. It was by gaining confidence and experience that he began to present his own taste, to stand on his own feet and settle in Paul Bert Serpette. Today, Nima Torbati presents a portrait of Simeon Buchbinder dated 1901 ...
This magnificent oil on canvas is a work of the great Polish painter Szymon (Simeon) Buchbinder (1853-1908). Most of his work represents genre or historical scenes, as well as small portraits.
He was introduced to drawing by his older brother, who gave him his first lessons. Little by little, his taste for drawing and painting asserts himself and pushes him to deepen the discipline. From 1869 to 1871, he studied at the Warsaw School of Drawing where he learned from two great painters, Wojciech Gerson and Rafal Hadziewicz . At the end of his studies, he obtained a job as a designer at the Vienna Opera and then joined, two years later, the “ Vienna Academy of Fine Art ” under the direction of Eduard Von Engerth .
His work took on a new dimension in 1897, when he arrived in Berlin. Simeon Buchbinder will then devote himself solely to portrait painting, which may make us think that the woman represented in this painting is a young Berlin woman.
The work done on this oil is of very high quality. This work is representative of the work of Simeon Buchbinder; the light is subtle, the black background makes it possible to highlight the subject and more particularly his face.
The supervision is also of high quality. This frame in wood and gilded stucco, presents a rich floral decoration and has a beautiful original fine gold gilding. It gives a lot of relief to the painting and highlights the very dark side of the painting.
“What I particularly like about this work is the very dark aspect of the background. It is a painting of great sobriety and so far, we can discern many details.
I am very sensitive to the Napoleon III style, I have a weakness for portraits which are particularly dark, I happen to buy them quite often. I like it when we have the feeling of monotony at first glance and when we pay more attention to it, we discover many details on which we can linger with a lot of pleasure ... "
