"Les Halles de Paris"

Original oil on canvas painting of Les Halles de Paris by the London born artist, H.F. Root. Signed lower left. Circa 1945. Very good condition, no restorations. Les Halles de Paris was the largest food market in Paris until it was demolished in 1971. The painting is housed in its period frame. Overall measurements are 29.5 by 41.75 inches.

H.F. Root was born in London at the turn of the century and studied art in the Academy of Paris. He was a member of the National Society of Fine Arts as well as the Society of Independent Artists. His paintings were exhibited at the Autumn Painting Show at the Grand Salon. He won a silver medal in 1947 and 1949.

Les Halles de Paris, the city’s fresh food market in the first arrondissement. Nicknamed “Le Ventre de Paris” (The Belly of Paris) by the writer Emile Zola, Les Halles de Paris was built by Haussmanian architect Victor Baltard. It was demolished in 1971 when most Parisians were on their summer holidays and replaced by the unloved Forum des Halle, a soulless concrete carbuncle squatting atop a subterranean rail hub.