WORKS
Paul Welsch begins the catalog of his oils, which he kept until the beginning of the year 1929, in 1915. A beautiful portrait of his mother made in 1914, in classic style, proves that he already mastered the skill at that time.
During this decade of the 1910s, he shaped his style by listening to the painting of his time: juxtaposition of horizontal lines in the study for the Landscape at the canal (1920) and, more frequently, rather thick painting punctuated by nervous brushstrokes, as in the Landscape at Feldberg, Young Girl Reading on the Ground, or Strasbourg Place Kléber decorated with flags for the Armistice of the MAMC of Strasbourg, all three from 1918.
The canvases are loaded with details, bright colors, even aggressive links, which Welsch quickly abandoned (Portrait of Doctor Stuttersheim [1917], Landscape in Feldberg [1918], even the portrait of his father Jacques Welsch).
Welsch's painting became simpler during his stay in Tunisia in 1920. The more limited color palette further enhanced the structure of the canvas. The face of the Berber Woman (1920), very elaborate, is highlighted by the stylized frame of the white shawl and the very geometric background which announces the following period. Oils from Tunisia are characterized by a sobriety that turns its back on the flashy aspect of certain Orientalist paintings; they are similar to Marquet's landscapes of North Africa (for example, Citadel in Tangier of 1913).
From the beginning of the 1920s until approximately 1924, Welsch tried his hand at cubism, which remained, despite everything, in the wake of L'Estaque with red roofs by Cézanne (1885) or The quarry of Bibémus (1895) as we can see. see it clearly on this Landscape on the Edge of the Loup from 1922. Studies will apply this geometric technique to the nude. The landscapes are formed of large colored spots which, however, do not deviate from reality, in the style of Derain.
Until the Second World War, Paul Welsch softened his painting: the nudes became rounder while those of the early 1920s remained very angular. He also dared to strip it to the extreme: the paintings became empty, finding their strength in the solidity of the construction and the science of the colors often limited to a range of blues and browns. The 1930 Austerlitz bridge is a striking example. This bareness is found in many Parisian landscapes (Rue Corvisart [1927], Poplar postern [1928]) and Quercy, in particular this Road to Puylaroque [1927] of a sidereal void.
"Paul Welsch's paintings are reminiscent of Protestant temples whose beauty disdains all unnecessary frills and resides in the nobility of their architectural lines alone. There is an austerity in Paul Welsch's art, instinctive at first, then methodically reasoned ." (Marc Lenossos, Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace, March 1948)
Welsch's work from this period is of only apparent austerity: the limited palette of many paintings is energized by a splash of bright color placed in a specific location. Thus, the yellow of the lemons, reinforced by the white of the bowl, gives all its strength to the still life Lemons and aubergines (circa1933).
Not all of the canvases of the interwar period are confined to this stripping, however, even if one of the main characteristics of Welsch's painting remains sobriety. Ochre mixes with blues, pinks and greens (one of the artist's favorite colours), and the glazing technique, which overlays many shades mainly in the foregrounds or in the skies, gives great subtlety to this painting, for example in the Landscape at Jaumard (circa 1930).
The years of war, amputated, for the painted work, of the months spent at the front or in the Oflags, mainly sum up in the Dordogne where the Welschs withdrew. This period is characterized by the fairly raw greens that are ubiquitous. One of the most successful examples is Mill in Dordogne (Guimalet) in 1944. In addition, there is a series of portraits of sad women, an echo of this tormented period (Young Woman in Black [1943], Woman with a Mirror [1943 ]).
The post-war works do not differ radically from what had been painted previously. There is however a greater serenity, a range of warmer colours. The landscapes of the South (Saint-Tropez, Malaucène) reflect this calm plenitude. Bersier notes in his article published in the Revue Méditerranéenne of May-June 1957: "[Landscapes] are endowed with space and that is saying something. The tone does not weaken from the foreground to the background and yet the air, the light circulate there and seem to paint the canvas, leading us into a peaceful world with harmonious and pure lines, a world of intimate grandeur, where everything is infinitely simple and faithful." This Fruit Basket, Saint-Tropez (circa 1949) shows it fully.
The canvases of Paris are livelier and more cheerful than those of the 1920s and early 1930s. They present happy scenes of everyday life: Jardin des Plantes, Entrance to Luxembourg, Walkers on the banks of the Seine [circa 1952], Bateaux Mouche pier [1952] where floats a joyous garland of flags.
The creation of a large mural for the dining room of the hotel school in Strasbourg (today Fustel de Coulanges secondary school) occupied part of the year 1953. It is a sort of synthesis of the work of Welsch celebrating man associated with nature. There we find the shed of Grape harvests in Puylaroque (1929), the green table of Still Life in the Greenery (circa 1953) from the National Museum of Modern Art of Pompidou Center, the Hunters in the Dordogne (1944), picking apples and the pre-war vineyards in Obernai.
Paul Welsch's pictorial career ends with an unfinished still life from December 1953: Small bottle and Fruit.
ENGRAVINGS
The engraved work of Paul Welsch has left traces older than the oils: London, of a somewhat soft craftsmanship, dates back to 1908. But the artist is truly noticed with Le Chantier, 1912 etching acquired in 1914 by the Society of Chicago Engravers. Engravings from this period are very detailed; the technique is mastered but not very personal.
Welsch radically changed his style by turning to wood engraving in the early 1920s: stylized drawing, surfaces closed by thick lines, more daring craftsmanship. Oasis in Gafsa (1920) or Landscape in Tunis from the National Museum of Fine Arts of Quebec are typical of this period.
After 1922, Welsch dedicated engraving to book illustration. He started lithography in 1925 (Maternity) but especially in 1929 with two works: Grape harvests at Puylaroque and The Englishwoman. The MAMC of Strasbourg has the two corresponding oils, the second being entitled Woman in red vest.
Welsch increased his production from 1942: 3 lithos in 1942, 2 in 1943, 5 in 1944, 3 in 1946, 6 in 1947 (including The bath), 9 in 1948 (including Saint-Tropez Harbour), 5 in 1951, 6 in 1952. Note that each lithograph corresponds to watercolor and oil painting on the same subject.
In 1949, the artist composed his first colour lithograph: The terrace. The Meeting of the Hunters (1949), Boats in Saint-Tropez (1950) and The Afternoon in the Garden (1952) followed.