Three artists, Edouard Traviès, Leon Danchin and Boris Riabouchinsky said RIAB, dominate the market of engraving and the lithography with hunting topic today. Each one, in a distinct style, transmits the art of hunting to us through his perception of the animal. The man is always absent from these works and their talent lies in the perfection of the animal representation.

 
Edouard Traviès

 
Edouard Traviès (Doullens 1809-Paris 1869) is a French painter and illustrator. After beginnings of caricaturist going in the steps of his younger brother Joseph (1804-1859), he turns to the representation of wild animals and insects. Using the watercolour preferably, he exposed regularly to the Living room of 1831 to 1866.
 
Quickly recognized as one of the most skilful animalist painters of his time, he receives many orders as illustrators in particular:

-         Buffon: Complete works.

-         Buffon: The most remarkable birds by their varied forms and their colors, scenes their manners and their practices. Paris London 1857.

-         Alphonse Toussenel: Birds of hunting Mr. d' Esterno Of the flight of the birds Paris 1864.

-         Rémond: Illustrated alphabet of the animals 1858.

-         Alcide d' Orbigny: Ornithological gallery, or Collection of birds of Europe, described by Alcide d' Orbigny, drawn according to nature by Edouard Traviès. Paris, Armand Robin, 1836.

 
In the 19th century, his most sought after works represented birds living in their natural environment, exercise in which he excelled. Today, the amateurs and collectors have some little forsaken this part of its work to be interested in these still life with “the bird” of which the series of twelve lithography was carried out for the Musée du chasseur.

 
Traviès appears as one of the main animalist artists of the middle of the 19th century and its works are always marked by a great fidelity with the model.

Illustration principale : Edouard Traviès, "La caille, la mésange bleue et le rouge-gorge" et "Le merle, la bécassine sourde, l'alouette ordinaire et le bouvreuil", Courtesy of Piasa.

 
Riab 
 

Riab, "griffon korthal et faisan", collection particulière.

Boris Riabouchinsky (Moscow 1898 - St Vincent of Lorouër 1975) is a French painter who specialized in the representation of the animals. After a childhood in the Russian upper middle class where he attends the best artistic schools of the Russian capital, he is constrained to flee in 1917.
In 1927, he settles in France and his passion for the hunting and his drawing talent make him embrace the artistic career.

He represented most game with a predilection for waterfowl. He left an important work but it is only after his death that he meets with success in spite of his great talent of animalist painter.

Starting from 1935, he signs his works RIAB that is a contraction of his family name.
His works are characterized in particular by promptness from the colours, like Traviès, he frequently employed the watercolour.

Riab is recognized today like one of the most important hunting‘s painters of the 20th century.

  
 
Leon Danchin

Léon Danchin, "Setter anglais et canard branché", collection privé.

 
Leon Danchin (Lille 1887-Bergues 1938) is a French painter. After having studied the sculpture the School of Beautiful the Art of Paris has, he is authorized to expose to the Living room of the Artists at the sixteen years age.
Without giving up the sculpture, he turns then to painting, the watercolour and engraving with for specific topic, hunting with a special attention for the dogs.
His canine representations are recognized internationally for the smoothness of the details and the capacity of Danchin to make the animal expressive.
Parallel to this first production, Danchin is interested in engraving and the lithography of which he produces more than 200 original boards. This production meets an immediate success and remains very famous today.
He is certainly the most known of the public and the specialists in the hunting which recognize his talent of artist and painter in watercolours as well as the great realism of these scenes of hunting.

  
The paintings, drawings and engravings of Traviès, Riab and Danchin make today the pride of the collectors and amateurs and their works always appear in good place in the catalogue of auction has topic “Animalist, Vénerie, Chasse”.

Cedric Henon, Fine Art Specialist