The Moulin Rouge in Paris, ca. 1898

The two drawings of the Moulin Rouge and Place Pigalle (inv. 1968-AE-8 & -9) are preliminary studies for the background of the famous painting Spaniard in Paris in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts. Numerous drawings by Evenepoel have been preserved. Not only does his entire oeuvre express a great preference for a purely linear style, but his training in architectural drawing and decoration made him a particularly gifted draughtsman. It is striking, however, that with the exception of a few pen and pastel drawings, he made few fully elaborated drawings. For Evenepoel, painting was the medium par excellence and drawings were generally preparatory studies. Evenepoel's great simplicity of technique and composition is characteristic. He remained true to the adage of his teacher Gustave Moreau that the simplicity of drawing is the basis of every truly great style. These two drawings also show these characteristic elements. Both drawings are very fluent and made with a self-confident hand. Although both have colour indications that presumably refer to the painting by The Spaniard in Paris, the drawings seem to have been painted from life and reflect the mundane Paris of the end of the nineteenth century in a simple manner. It is interesting to compare the drawing of the Moulin Rouge with an oil sketch of the same subject in the museum's collection. The sharp, precise lines have given way to broad, more nervous and expressive strokes.