The family of Charles de Bonneville, a talented artist who spent decades capturing the architectural heritage of France's Haute-Loire region through his drawings, has launched a comprehensive search to locate his scattered artwork. Twenty-two years after the artist's death, his relatives are working to compile a retrospective album that will preserve his artistic legacy for future generations.
Charles de Bonneville was a distinctive figure in the region, easily recognizable with his hat firmly placed on his head, a pipe at the corner of his mouth, and a pencil in his hand. For years, he dedicated himself to drawing the landscapes and historical monuments of Haute-Loire, from Le Puy-en-Velay where he lived to Champagnac-le-Vieux where he regularly visited his in-laws. The artist continuously focused his artistic eye and skillful hand on capturing and sublimating the region's old stones and architectural patrimony.
"This is a memory project to introduce our descendants to this man with extraordinary artistic talents," explained his widow, Alix. The initiative was spearheaded by his granddaughter Carole, who said, "The idea had been rolling around in my head for several months. I have this desire to gather grandpa's drawings in a retrospective work, to publish an album for our family and interested friends." Working alongside her uncle Hubert, Carole began by conducting research within the family before expanding their search throughout the entire department.
Since June, Carole and Hubert have successfully collected more than 170 drawings signed by Charles de Bonneville. However, Carole knows that many pieces are still missing. "Many originals remained in the family, but others were sold or given away, and their trace has been lost," she explained. "Grandpa was a very kind, very generous man. He gave away many drawings and also sold some."
One significant source of missing artwork traces back to Champagnac-le-Vieux, where the artist's brother-in-law Jean had commissioned him to create paintings that were later offered for sale at an organized event in Champagnac to benefit a cause that family members can no longer recall exactly. This suggests that residents of the Brivadois area may possess one or more of his drawings. Some current owners have already contacted the family, and the relatives want to clarify that they do not wish to reclaim the artworks – they simply want to photograph them to preserve a record in the family album.
The planned album will trace the creative journey of Charles de Bonneville, who was born in Nièvre in 1932 and studied at the Fine Arts school in Saint-Étienne from 1948 to 1952. "He settled with my grandmother in Le Puy in the early 1960s," his granddaughter recalled. "As a member of the association Les Artistes du Velay, he participated in numerous exhibitions during the 1990s and early 2000s."
Over the years, Bonneville's artistic style evolved and flourished through his drawings executed in pencil, India ink, and felt-tip pen. "I'm not very objective, but what I find impressive is that he drew without a ruler, just like that, freehand. He really had a compass in his eye," Carole noted. His artistic precision is evident in his drawings of the Saint-Julien Basilica, the churches of Saint-Etienne-sur-Blesle and Champagnac, the bell tower of Saint-Hilaire, and the castles of Servières in Saint-Didier-sur-Doulon and des Grèzes in Lamothe – all pieces that the family has already included in their album.
The memorial album will serve as pages to transmit one man's vision of his homeland, telling the story of Haute-Loire as Charles de Bonneville loved it and sharing the gentleness and intensity of his artistic perspective with future generations. Anyone in possession of drawings or paintings by Charles de Bonneville who would be willing to allow them to be photographed can contact Hubert de Bonneville at hubertdebonnevillefree.fr or by phone at 06.51.88.87.97.
