Chalet in the Mountains | François Louis Fritz de Niederhäusern

FRANÇOIS LOUIS FRITZ DE NIEDERHÄUSERN
Switzerland, 1828-1888

A Rustic Chalet in the Swiss Mountains

Oil on canvas
Signed lower right "F de Niederhausern"

18 1/4" H x 23 1/2" W [frame]
14 5/8" H x 19 7/8" W [canvas]

This landscape oil painting by François Niederhausern presents a finely executed Alpine scene with a stone dwelling with board-and-batten siding set among trees and rising terrain overlooking a brilliant blue lake. The composition is balanced and structured with clear atmospheric perspective and precise rendering of natural forms. Niederhausern employs a cool palette dominated by blues and greens where the most subtle shifts in tone capture the quality of light under scattered cloud cover. Of particular note is the extraordinary precision in the brushwork.

Note the size of the canvas, though relatively small it is painted with larger-than-life capture of intimate detail throughout. Even the smallest elements of foliage, stones or minute architectural details are rendered with control and clarity. Shadows are handled convincingly, anchoring the figures and structures within the terrain. The painting reflects both the artist’s technical discipline and his close observation of nature, aligning with 19th-century academic traditions in landscape painting.

Condition: Linen is lined and is taut and sturdy. Original stretcher bars in good condition with four original keys. Cleaned and sealed in traditional Dammar varnish. Under UV showing inpainting throughout from old restorations, including inpainted hole (approx. the size of a quarter) on right side in the mid-sky, inpainting and overpaint to the extreme edges where the frame rubs and scattered touchups/overpaint through the sky. Craquelure throughout. Modern giltwood frame with minor abrasions and wear.

ref. 501RPH02P