Frédéric Samuel Cordey Biography

Frédéric Samuel Cordey (1854-1911) was a French landscape painter who was a part of the Impressionist movement. He was a close friend of Auguste Renoir, and had a personal fortune that allowed him to work according to his taste, regardless of the publicity and support provided by art dealers.

A student of Isidore Pils and Gustave Boulanger, Cordey was part of a group that revolted against the teachings of his teachers with his friend Pierre Franc Lamy. Cordey quickly abandoned traditional painting to follow the path of the Impressionists and exhibited four paintings Rue à Montmartre ("Street in Montmartre"), Le Pont des Saints-Pères ("Bridge at Saints-Pères"), le Séchoir ("The Dryer", Chantilly), Pêcheur ("Fisherman", sketch) with them in 1877.

In 1881, Gustave Caillebotte informed Camille Pissarro that he wanted Cordey to exhibit with the Impressionists, but that year Cordey was in Algiers with André Lhote. Cordey exhibited his work at the Salon des indépendants in 1884.

Cordey was close to Renoir and was one of his most loyal companions. Cordey appeared in several paintings by the master painter, for example, the Bal du moulin de la galette ("Dance at Le moulin de la Galette") and La Conversation ("The Conversation"). Auguste Renoir's son, Jean, reported a theory of Cordey's which appealed a lot to his father: "Painters, like gymnasts, must keep in shape. They must keep a clear sight, precise movements, and good legs to go meet the landscape."

Cordey was a great admirer of the musician François Cabaner. To help him as he was poor and dying, Cordey (like other artists) gave one of his works to be auctioned and raise funds. Paul Cézanne mentioned the list of the offered works in a letter to his friend Émile Zola. He also admired Nina de Callias and Léon Dierx, whose portraits he drew. Cordey's painting Léon Dierx, prince des poètes ("Léon Dierx, prince of poets") was purchased by Georges Viau in 1899.

Attentive to landscapes, he stayed close to Camille Pissarro in Neuville-sur-Oise and Éragny. He participated in the Salon d'automne from its inception in 1903 until 1908. He was named a member of the Salon in 1904, where he exhibited six of his paintings.

Cordey exhibited ten paintings at the Salon in 1906, including six of the banks of the Oise. He exhibited rarely, however, the art critics Adolphe Tabarant, Paul Alexis, and Gustave Geffroy were very eulogistic in the preface to the retrospective exhibition of Cordey in 1913-1914 at Choiseul Gallery.