Charles Alexandre Giron (2 April 1850 – 9 June 1914) was a Swiss painter and art critic. He specialized in portraits and scenes with figures; some of them mildly humorous.

Biography

Giron was born on 2 April 1850 in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

. His father, Antoine-Alexandre Giron, was a Catholic from Spain, who came to Switzerland via Sardinia. His mother, Marie Henriod, was a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

from

Neuchâtel Neuchâtel (, ; ; ) is a list of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the capital (political), capital of the cantons of Switzerland, Swiss canton of Neuchâtel (canton), Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel ...

. Initially, he was apprenticed to an enameler, but decided to become an artist instead. He began by taking lessons from François Diday and

Barthélemy Menn Barthélemy Menn (20 May 1815 – 10 October 1893) was a Swiss people, Swiss painter and draughtsman who introduced the principles of ''plein-air'' painting and the ''paysage intime'' into Swiss art. Early life Menn was the youngest of four sons, ...

in Geneva. In 1872, he went to Paris, where he frequented the Hôtel de Nice, a boarding house on the that was home to some painters from Switzerland. Later, he shared several studios with

Max Leenhardt Michel Maximilien Leenhardt (2 April 1853, Montpellier – 15 May 1941, Clapiers) was a French painter, known for landscapes, history paintings and genre scenes. Biography His father was a bank manager.

. His first exhibition at the

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

came in 1876 and consisted mostly of landscapes. Eventually, he found a position in the studios of

Alexandre Cabanel Alexandre Cabanel (; 28 September 1823 – 23 January 1889) was a French Painting, painter. He painted historical, classical and religious subjects in the Academic art, academic style. He was also well known as a portrait painter. He was Napoleon ...

at the

École des Beaux-Arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...

. During his time in France, he travelled extensively, visiting England, the Netherlands and Italy. A planned tour of India, sponsored by the

Maharajah of Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city i ...

, failed to materialize. He was awarded the

Order of Leopold Order of Leopold may refer to: * Order of Leopold (Austria), founded in 1808 by emperor Francis I of Austria and discontinued in 1918 * Order of Leopold (Belgium), founded in 1832 by king Leopold I of Belgium * Order of Leopold II, founded in Congo ...

in 1887 and, the following year, was named a Chevalier in the

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

. In 1891, he married Jeanne Antoinette Forget; the daughter of a merchant. They had three children. Their daughter, Simone, married into the noble After being active in Paris and

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

, he and his family returned to Switzerland in 1896 and lived in several locations before settling in

Genthod Genthod is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality of the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. History Genthod is first mentioned around 1301-1400 as ''Gentouz''. Geography Genthod has an area, , of . Of this area, or 36.2% is used for agricu ...

. In his capacity as an art critic, he came to the defense of

Ferdinand Hodler Ferdinand Hodler (March 14, 1853 – May 19, 1918) was a Swiss painter. He is one of the best-known Swiss painters of the nineteenth century. His early works were portraits, landscapes, and genre paintings in a realistic style. Later, he ad ...

, when Hodler's controversial proposal for frescoes in the Weapons Room at the

Swiss National Museum The Swiss National Museum () is a museum in Zurich, Switzerland's largest city, adjacent to Central Station and the '' Platzspitz'' park. It is part of the ''Musée Suisse Group'', which is itself affiliated with the Federal Office of Culture ...

was rejected. He sat on the admissions jury for the

Exposition Universelle (1900) The Exposition Universelle of 1900 (), better known in English as the 1900 Paris Exposition, was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from 14 April to 12 November 1900, to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate develop ...

. In 1901, he created murals for the National Council in

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

. From 1898 to 1912, he served several terms on the (Federal Fine Arts Commission). In 1913, he suffered a stroke that left him unable to paint. He died on 9 June 1914 in Genthod. Two major retrospectives have been held: Zürich/Geneva in 1920 and Bern in 1955. A street in Geneva is named after him.

Selected paintings

File:Giron Ignacy Jan Paderewski.jpg, Portrait of

Paderewski Ignacy Jan Paderewski (; r 1859– 29 June 1941) was a Polish pianist, composer and statesman who was a spokesman for Polish independence. In 1919, he was the nation's prime minister and foreign minister during which time he signed the Tre ...

File:Portrait de Mlle Maguie D. Charles Giron (1850-1914).jpg, Portrait of Miss Maguie D. or Lady at the piano File:Giron, Contre jour.jpg, Against the Day File:Giron-Trapeze.png, The Trapeze Artist and the Clown File:Giron-Bacchanale.png,

Bacchanal The Bacchanalia were unofficial, privately funded popular Roman festivals of Bacchus, based on various ecstatic elements of the Greek Dionysia. They were almost certainly associated with Rome's native cult of Liber, and probably arrived in Rome ...

References

External links

More works by Giron
@ ArtNet {{DEFAULTSORT:Giron, Charles 1850 births 1914 deaths Swiss people of French descent Swiss painters Swiss portrait painters Swiss art critics

Biography

Selected paintings

References

Further reading

External links