Featured Naive American southern scene

I really hope the team here will be able to help a friend identify this painting, which I
think is certainly unusual and worth the time. Bought on a flea market in France. I have written to 2 museums ( 1 in Richmond and another ... but no answer ) I have 4 more photos but not sure if I should upload all at once ???

 

pure Americana ....... I'd have snagged that as well !!!
Good Luck !

more photo's the better....... and the back as well.

( what would stop u from adding more pics ????.)

 

not sure what's going on , to the right, that's got those two guys attention....

 

Why do you believe it to be an American scene? And I'm puzzled by the fact that the women's clothing doesn't correspond to the date of 1891 but some decades earlier.

Debora

 

There’s something up the rock outcrop. Looks like the one quy trying to figure out the size of something. I also like the size of the dog..

 

Soldiers from the Second French Empire.

Debora

 

Would/could you post a photograph of the back please?

Debora

 

good point......... I rushed to judgement.....


French national guard hat.

 

I thought I saw a US civil war cap..

 

...indian war cap..

 

ok...so I'm confused...........
I'll go with the guy and his violin.....not fiddle ..... having a huge French style nose....

I'm sorry for shooting from the hip........
but I still would have snagged it too.

 

and of course the guys are playing French Horns !

 

A kepi. This one is very similar and French.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepi

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3249319145...-a186-220f01064774|iid:1|vlpname:vlp_homepage

Debora

 

My 'aI' program doesn't enhance faces as good as I would like, plus I enlarged it a bit...........and I couldn't make it pick up (select) ALL of the faces, but do think there's some sort of a celebration going on as several are holding stemmed glasses and there's a basket down front, as well as a bottle of 'something'!!!

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Think it might be celebrating ,engagement perhaps of the couple on the left of painting,as he seems to be giving her flowers.Note woman in centre of scene is looking at them(mother in law) ? and the two on the right are looking at a waterfall,water flowing over lower part of rock formation.I read Courtau 1891 as signature,but unable to find artist.

 

Maybe because of the person at the back, possibly a darker-skinned servant. Darker-skinned servants and slaves were found in many parts of the Western and colonial world at the time.
The building looks colonial Australian to me, but the trees aren't Australian. Maybe another British colony?

French surnames are also found in many parts of the world.

Agree, 1860s or so.

 

No need to go so far away - I think it could also be a French country house with a typical "hip" roof -



https://sharonsantoni.com/2010/08/the-quintessentially-french-house/

 

@Matahari, Not that I can totally discern the signature, I added some contrast & sharpness to offset the signature as much as I could.......not sure it helps tho....

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It could be, but the stone is more yellowish, which is another reason why it reminded me of Australian colonial buildings. But as I said, it couldn't be Australian anyway, with those trees.
Of course it could be yellowing of the varnish.