Rodolphe Théophile Bosshard, Roulotte en bord de mer, Oil on Canvas, Framed

Rodolphe-Théophile Bosshard is a Swiss painter, draftsman, engraver and writer born June 7, 1889 in Morges and died September 17, 1960 in Chardonne.

Known in particular for his female nudes, and also for his landscapes, he was active in Paris during the interwar period.

A major figure in Swiss painting in the first half of the 20th century, Rodolphe-Théophile Bosshard was born on June 7, 1889 in Morges, between Lausanne and Geneva. It was there that her mother Hélène, a Neuchâtel resident of French origin, joined her own mother who ran a boarding house for young girls there. His father Ernst, from a family of Zurich watchmakers established in Germany, had died a few months before the painter's birth in Poland, then Russian, as an employee in a textile factory.

Bosshard, called Touli by those close to him, grew up on the shores of Lake Geneva with his two sisters and his brother. He will be deeply marked by the atmosphere of fervent and joyful piety which was reformed, the Bosshards belong to the Moravian Church. But also by the omnipresence of women, bringing his mother, his sisters, a swarm of boarders.

Like his brother Ernest, Rodolphe-Théophile attended the college of Morges from 1899, then he went to the Classical Gymnasium of Lausanne, where he passed his baccalaureate in 1907.
Passionate about music, he enjoys improvisations on the piano with real talent and even tries his hand at the cello. Music and painting will accompany him throughout his life. Thus, in the gymnasium, his portrait of Beethoven, in chalk, caused a sensation and remained on the board for a long time. The composer Bernard Reichel, his cousin, would later say that he often shared Bosshard's Parisian studio. While Reichel composed there, his cousin painted, and sometimes Bosshard sat at the piano and improvised Viennese waltzes.

But it is painting that will monopolize the young artist, which worries his family. Eugène Burnand, a family friend, said to the mother of the future artist: “You see Madam, there are already too many young painters. We should all drown them like little cats. » The young man overlooks the fears of those around him.
In 1907, with his baccalaureate in hand, Rodolphe-Théophile, a true admirer of Ferdinand Hodler and Eugène Carrière, entered the Beaux-Arts in Geneva. There taught Eugène Gilliard, his mentor who had a strong impact on him, Pierre Pignolat, Eugène Martin and David Estoppey. He made friends, including the painter Gustave Buchet, of whom he later painted a portrait, the musician and composer Frank Martin, and the brothers Jean and Paul Budry. After two years, Bosshard left the Beaux-Arts. Original frame
Golden wooden frame
101 x 177 x 3.5 cm