Description:
Emile Georges Giran (1870-1902) was a French painter, educated in Paris. He first presented his works at the Salon Société des Artistes Français in 1890, and for the following years he exhibited at the Salons Société Nationale des Beaux–Arts. He was engaged in landscape and portrait painting in oil and pastel techniques. A popular motif portrayed by him were scenes in the interiors with a strong emotional charge. He was also involved in lithography, gaining popularity due to the creating of posters *.

The painting presented in the Rogalin gallery was started just four years after Emile Giran‘s debut at the Paris Salon Société des Artistes Français. Critics point out that similar, or even identical, views of the figure and scene appear in other works of the artist – “Intimité“ and “Scène d‘intérieur“ created in the 1890s *. The emotional charge so subtly expressed in the works of E. Giran is also present in “In the Nest at Home“.

Description of the image: In a dark room two figures are depicted, a man and a woman. The woman, shown in profile, is sitting at a table, on which books, letters and documents are scattered. She is deeply engrossed in reading one of them. Her face is illuminated by the light that is probably coming through the window. She is dressed in dark clothes and her slightly graying hair is tied up high. There is a delicate smile on her face. On her left side a young man is leaning towards her. He seems to be whispering something into her ear. The features of the man‘s face are not clear. He remains anonymous. On the wall behind them there are cards with illustrations.

The context of the accompanying objects of the characters does not seem to match the furnishings of the “home nest“. The woman sitting at the table, absorbed in her task, does not engage in activities typical for a housewife. The figure of the man approaching her, through his presence and physical closeness, becomes the cause of the excitement appearing on the woman‘s face. The mutual relationship of the characters emphasizes the intimate character of the scene captured in this snapshot.