Galerie Pétridès, Paris
Jacques Zucker, Paris (acquired from the above on October 22, 1954)
Gifted from the son of the above to the present owner, circa 2000

This painting belongs to Utr🌱illo's White Period, when the artist freed himself from Impressionist influences and pursued his own solitary course by concentrating on the depiction of white buildings in and around Paris. It was during this period that Utrillo was first discovered for his very Modern approach to painting stre🥃ets in cities and towns. His unique use of color and emphasis on brilliant, varying shades of white won him acclaim among critics and collectors.

Adolphe Tabarant wrote about this period, "He has become obsessed with white - an incredible white! Dissatisfied with the effects obtainable with zinc white, he tries combining it with plaster, in an effort to reproduce the white of his beloved walls. In a frenzy of realism, he would like to go as far as to put real moss on the old stones which he strives so hard to reproduce. This is the beginning of that series of works known as the 'white period'. At this time Utrillo uses a palette of many whites, but these never become chalky, soft greys, delicate pinks, deep blues or else he contrasts them with sonorous browns and blacks. It is during this period that he achieves his most striking work... with each new work he rises to further heights and, with the most delicate sensitivity, he clothes in splendor all that the casual eye of the passerby neglects" (Adolphe Tabarant, Utrillo, Paris, 1926).