Georges Stein was a French painter who is best known for capturing views of Paris and London especially during the Belle-Epoque Era which afforded the opportunity to capture the glamour, the excitement, and the elegance of this “Golden Era” of peace, prosperity and advancement. Stein was born in Paris, the descendant of bookbinder Marc-Séverin and Barbe Kintziger. By 1906, Stein was living in Montigny-sur-Loing, being a member of the Société des artistes français, and exhibited at the Salon des artistes français from 1912 to 1914, during which time the artist lived in Melun. Stein was a student of Jules Lefebvre and Gustave Boulanger.
Stein's paintings recreate the haute couture, the social mores, and leisure activities of native Parisians and Londoners. The result is an intimate and yet provocative window into a seductive time in history with illustrious buildings and monuments, dazzling ladies, grand gentlemen, uniformed officers, children escorted by nannies—all captured at various work, social, leisure and play pursuits.
Stein's works are marked by spontaneity, dynamism and movement, giving the viewer the feeling of participating in the scenes observed. Under the influence of Jean Béraud, Stein worked in particular on the treatment of light to translate the bustle of Parisian life. Stein populated his paintings with elegant women in a hurry as they went about their daily business. In response to a commission in 1910 by Léon Roubot, director of the Élysée-Palace, Stein produced a set of four large canvases for the décor of a new casino in Vichy, which depicted carriage rides, visits to the brasseries, the casino and the racetrack.
Exhibited:
Exhibition of the Société des Arts de Seine-et-Marne, 1914, 8th exhibition.