Sur La Seine
by Elie Anatole Pavil

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Elie Pavil Paintings

Pavil was born in Odessa in the Ukraine in 1873 and he and his family moved to Paris in 1892 where he began his career as a painter.

Elie Anatole Pavil concentrated principally on Parisian street scenes, particularly in the Montmartre area, as well as views of the Canal de l'Ourcq and river banks. He also excelled in capturing the light and colour of the Parisian parks that he frequented - some of his very best pieces show the floral colouration of the boulevards of the Grand Parks in Paris - often animated with elegant figures of the day. Claude Monet, perhaps the era's most popular painter, is known to have described Pavil's paintings as "little marvels."

He also painted many pictures, with the same attention to detail, in Morocco, in the souks and in the port in Rabat. His exposure to the Impressionists meant that he was very sensitive to how light varied according to the time of day, season of the year, or atmospheric conditions. He lived for many years, until his death, in Morocco. His daughter Lina Pavil later expertised her fathers work and paintings with her inscriptions and text on the back are often found.

Pavisl most sought after views are those of the effects of weather on the Seine and the streets of Paris - his portraits are rare and also highly prized as are his orientalist scenes which he executed in his later years. He is described by many as one of the finest expatriate impressionist painters that worked in France.

Elie Pavil exhibited his paintings in Paris, at the Salon des Artistes Français (from 1905), at the Salon des Indépendants (from 1906), and at the Salon d'Automne (from 1906). In 1928, he received an honourable mention, and in 1930 and 1931 silver medals. He was made a Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur.

We are experts in the work of Elie Anatole Pavil and have bought and sold in excess of 100 of his paintings in the course of the last 20 years. His signature and style developed gradually over the years of his artistic career and there are notable differences between his early and late work.  His very early paintings are often signed Pavill, Pavil or E Pavil, later in his career he opted for the signature Elie Pavil and after that the majority of his work was signed E A Pavil. On his death his daughter added the studio stamp to paintings that were not signed by her father - this was often accompanied by an extensive inscription on the reverse stating the title of the work and a signed affidavit of authenticity by Lina Pavil. In 1972 there was a studio sale of his paintings at Hotel Drouot in Paris where around 300 oils, and works on paper were sold - these also bear a cachet of the estate which is a facsimile of his signature.

There are now a great deal of forged works by Pavil which are originating in Eastern Europe - the increased interest in eastern and impressionist art has made works by Pavil much more valuable and hence forgeries more common. If you own a work by Pavil or are considering purchasing one then we offer a verbal opinion on the works authenticity based on photographs.

We generally carry in stock around 20-30 oils by Elie Anatole Pavil across a broad range of dates subjects and prices. If there is a specific period or subject of Pavil's that you are looking for then please contact us as we may have work in our inventory that is not currently on display. Examples of his paintings can be found in the Musee d'Orsay and in the Musee de Petit Palais in Paris

Museum and Gallery Holdings

Paris (Mus. d'Orsay)

Paris (Mus. du Petit Palais)

Elie Pavil Paintings

Previously Sold Artworks