Schmitt: Old Farmhouse Attic, The Eaves, ca 1950 French Woman Artist

The soft light is seeping through the eaves makes  this old farmhouse attic a warm and inviting place. We see old fashioned, yet remarkably stylish accessories: on a tailor's mannequin, a lace shawl and a feather boa; a hat with a purple bow and an extravagant feather. There is a reminder of childhood, a doll, and an umbrella. The attic is a place for dressing up, for play and make believe.
This stunning large composition is a work by Gilberte Schmitt, (1907-2001), a woman artist from Bordeaux who came to Paris to study at the Ecole Nationale des Arts Décoratifs in the 1930s. She exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français, the Salon des Indépendants and the Salon of Women Painters and Sculptors. In the 1950s, paintings and drawings by Gilberte were acquired by the French State and by City of Paris, as well by the former President Giscard d'Estaing and the King of Saudi Arabia. The work presented here dates from this period. The oil on canvas is signed at the lower left, and is situated "Fontainebleau" - a country town near Paris known for its castle - on the verso