Postwar French Paintings

About this collection

Postwar French painting is the work of painters who kept to the figure and the motif in France after 1945, while much of the Paris avant-garde turned to abstraction.

The paintings here were made from the 1950s to recent years, portraits, gardens, town squares, harbors and the racecourse, mostly in oil on canvas and on panel, with the occasional pastel. Many of them are signed on the front.

Wildflowers in a blue and grey stoneware jug with green and red apples on a table, signed oil by Andre Charigny in a carved cream and red bole frame

Andre Charigny (1902-2000)

Flowers in a Blue Jug

$2,800

A golfer at the end of his swing on a wooded course, signed oil on canvas by Victor Spahn, in a black and gilt frame

Victor Spahn (born 1949)

The Golf Player

$2,795

Paul Flaubert

La Place du Bourg, 1950s

$1,900

Henri Stenn (1903-1993)

The Luxembourg Garden, Paris

$2,800

Two polo players at the gallop with mallets raised, their chestnut ponies crossing a sunlit field, in a gilt and black frame (Claude Fossoux)

Claude Fossoux (b. 1946)

Polo Players, 1970s

$3,700

Four Belle Epoque figures in a group, signed oil on canvas by Ramon Dilley dated 1973

Ramon Dilley (1932-)

Elstir en Famille, 1973

$2,700

Ramon Dilley

Piper with a Peacock, 1996

$4,300

An avenue of trees with figures on the path, signed Henri Stenn, in a carved and whitewashed frame

Henri Stenn (1903-1993)

Tree-Lined Avenue, 1900s

$1,800

Paris street scene between tall buildings, signed oil on canvas by Georges Berger dated 1975

Georges Berger (1908-1976)

Street Scene with Figures, 1975

$1,800

An oval lake landscape titled Lake District, signed oil on canvas by Iris Raquin, 1964, in a gilt frame with a grey linen mount

Iris Raquin (1911-1997)

Lake District, 1964

$1,900

Woman with yellow gloves, a feathered hat and a pink parasol, signed oil on canvas by André Chochon, in a gilded frame

André Chochon (1910-2005)

Woman with Yellow Gloves, 1900s

$2,400

Signed pastel by Hugues Claude Pissarro showing a garden path leading to a stone birdbath, in a moulded gilt frame under glass

Hugues Claude Pissarro (born 1935)

Garden Path with Birdbath, 1960s

$8,900

Flowers in a turquoise vase against a brown damask wall, signed Simon-Auguste, in a gilt frame

Simon-Auguste (1909-1987)

Flowers in a Turquoise Vase, 1950s

$1,800

Signed Marie Astoin landscape painted in thick impasto, oil on wood panel, 20th century French school, in a gilt moulded frame

Marie Astoin (1923-2011)

Impasto Landscape, 20th Century

$2,300

Signed Victor Spahn painting of a red Formula One racing car on a wet track, oil on canvas, 21st century French school, unframed

Victor Spahn (born 1949)

F1 Car in the Rain, 21st Century

$4,355

Elsewhere in the gallery

Postwar French paintings for sale at GalerieClub

After 1945 many French painters chose to stay with what they could see. The postwar French paintings in this collection keep a recognizable subject, a face, a garden, a square, a race, and paint it with free brushwork and bold color.

Signed postwar French paintings

Most of these painters signed on the front, often in a lower corner, and a signed postwar French painting can usually be placed in its painter's career by the signature and the subject. Oil on canvas and on panel make up most of the collection, with a few works on board and in pastel.

Gardens, harbors and the racecourse

The subjects are those of everyday French life. Paris gardens and town squares, fishing harbors, polo, golf and motor racing sit next to portraits and flowers, painted for people who wanted a picture of their own world rather than an abstraction.

For the earlier part of the century, see our 20th century French paintings. Shipping is free to the USA and Canada, packed and tracked from France. New to buying paintings? Start with our guide to How to Collect Antique Paintings.

Postwar French Paintings

Postwar French paintings for sale at GalerieClub

Signed postwar French paintings

Gardens, harbors and the racecourse

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