László Paál (Zam, 1846 - Charenton le pont, 1879) - Lot 187

László Paál (Zam, 1846 - Charenton le pont, 1879) László Paál was a Hungarian painter frequently associated with the Barbizon School. He first studied law in Vienna, before developing his drawing skills. His taste for art became apparent when he attended the International Fine Arts Exhibition in Munich in 1869. There, he discovered and admired the art of Gustave Courbet, as well as that of Jean-François Millet and Théodore Rousseau, two painters from the Barbizon School who painted landscapes in the open air. During this same period, László Paál began a study trip to the Netherlands, accompanied by Eugen Jettel. He then settled in Düsseldorf. Alongside his friend and painter Mihály Munkácsy (1844-1900), László de Paál moved to Barbizon in France in 1873. László de Paál adopted a realist style of painting, focusing on the forest of Fontainebleau. László de Paál showed a pronounced taste for transcribing variations in light, punctuating the composition with vertical and horizontal motifs. The chromatic palette is dominated by browns and greens. László Paál took an active part in the exhibitions of his time, notably exhibiting at the Paris Salons. He received numerous medals, notably at the Vienna World's Fair in 1873 for Coucher de Soleil, and at the Paris World's Fair in 1878 for Forêt de Fontainebleau. László Paál died in 1879 at the age of 33, after a short but intense artistic career. The Hungarian National Gallery in Budapest holds an important collection of works by László Paál.