MALTESTE Louis
THE BENEDICTION OF THE GRAPES ON AUGUST 15
Oil on canvas: 50 x 70.5 cm / 19.7 x 27.7 ins
Signed lower left
Painter of genre scenes and historical subjects; lithographer, draughtsman and illustrator.
Louis Malteste was the brother of Henri Théodore Malteste, known as Malatesta. He lived and worked in Paris, where he exhibited in 1897 at the Salon des Cent and in 1902 at the Salon de la Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. He contributed to the cartoon press, designed posters and postcards and may have produced erotic drawings.
The blessing of the grapes is a national festival in Armenia. The vine-stock is sacred to all Armenians, as are its fruits. That’s why this ceremony takes place before the harvest of the first grapes and the beginning of the wine and cognac making process.
Period:
Chartres 1862 - Paris 1928
French School
Literature:
E. Bénézit, "Dictionary of Artists", Paris 2006, Vol. 9, p. 121.
