Alexandre Lunois Biography

Alexandre Lunois (1863-1916) was a French artist who reinvented the lithography technique and shared scenes from far-flung travels through his art.

A mischievous and lively child, Alexander Lunois grew up in Paris, near bustling marketplaces and the Flamboyant Gothic Church of Saint-Eustache, the second largest in the city. Like so many artists, Lunois showed an early interest in drawing. Using charcoal he collected, Lunois liked to capture scenes around Les Halles food market; muscular Percheron draft horses pulling carts, the faces of his neighbours, and the smiles of his friends with whom he liked to stroll through the vibrant streets.

By his own admission, Lunois was not highly academic at school. But he devoured literature, read his way through the library’s history books, and adored travel stories. Most of all, he harboured an irresistible desire to become an artist. Upon hearing this, his teacher was reportedly stunned and stared at his spirited student with pity:

“You? A painter? But you barely know how to sharpen your pencil, and you scribble on the pages of books and notebooks with fantastic silhouettes, with incomprehensible strokes... You, a painter! But you can't even draw...”

Despite his teacher’s mocking response to Lunois’ bold ambitions, he still resolved to become a painter. He loved nothing more than spending his days at the Louvre observing the rich colours of the Dutch masters, the captivating compositions of the Rembrandts and the bold brushstrokes of Velázquez.

By the time Lunois was 17, he started his apprenticeship under the celebrated artist Achille Sirouy. He began by replicating the work of other artists before starting to produce his own etchings. And he quickly made a name for himself, exhibiting at the Salon of French Artists every year from 1882 to 1890.

The travel books that Lunois consumed in childhood obviously continued to influence him. In 1888, Lunois got a travel grant which allowed him to travel to Belgium and Holland. For at least a year, Lunois continued his adventure, exploring Algeria, Morocco and Spain, and painting numerous works along the way. As always, he focused on portraits of people and paintings of animals. His sketches and etchings captured snapshots of everyday life.

Returning to Paris in 1889, Lunois interpreted the many sketches he made on his travels using lithography. He reinvented an old technique and created his very own style of lithography, one that drew the attention of some of the most notable Parisian gallerists and art dealers of the time, including Gustave Pellet and Edmund Sagot.

Lunois never lost his fascination with travel and continued to explore and capture far-flung destinations throughout his career. Some say his images have a touristy edge, which may be why he fell out of favour eventually. Others believe Lunois was an extremely talented artist, unfairly overlooked in favour of some of his contemporaries, which included the likes of Picasso, Matisse and Gauguin.

Lunois introduced his techniques to some great artists such as Pierre Bonnard and Édouard Vuillard, who went on to create their own lithographic masterpieces, confirming that Lunois himself is worthy of another look.