JEAN-BAPTISTE OLIVE (1848-1936)
Mourre Nègre (1, 125m - 3, 691 ft)
France (Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur)
In Champs de coquelicots dans le Luberon, 1872, oil on canvas Private collection
The mountain
The Mourre Nègre (1, 125m - 3, 691 ft) is the highest point of the Luberon Massif. Nowadays, this summit is rounded and capped with a hertzian antenna, which allows to see it from quite far away. It is located in the Grand Lubéron, straddling the communes of Auribeau, Cabrières-d'Aigues and Castellet.
Mourre and Negre both come from the Provençal, the first means "muzzle" and is often used to designate rounded summits, the second means "black".
The Grand Lubéron is the main part of the Luberon massif in terms of size, length and width. It must not be confused with Monts du Vaucluse.
Open or semi-open (closed in drought) to road traffic, the "path of the peaks" and the "path of the riders" roam the peaks of the Grand Lubéron including Mourre Nègre. It is accessed by Lourmarin, Cucuron, Cabrières-d'Aigues and Vitrolles-en-Luberon South Luberon side as well as by Auribeau North side. Several other paths allow the discovery of the Luberon. Some are reserved for walkers, or riders.
The painter
Jean-Baptiste Olive was a French painter, the son of a wine merchant, born in Marseille. Étienne Cornellier, a decorator, encouraged him to register at École des beaux-arts de Marseille where he studied under the guidance of Joanny Rave. While training as a decorator, he painted many scenes of Marseille, its Vieux-Port (Old Harbour), its islands, and its seashore. In 1874 he travelled to Italy, mainly to Genoa and Venice. He occasionally participated in some of Provence's exhibitions at the time. In 1881 he became a member of Société des Artistes Français, and one year later he relocated to Paris. He contributed to the decoration of several Parisian places like the Cirque d’Hiver, the Basilica of the Sacré Cœur and the Exposition Universelle warded several prizes there. In 1900 he won an order by the company Chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée for two paintings created as decoration for the golden room at Le Train Bleu, a spectacular restaurant designed by architect Marius Toudoire in the Paris-Gare de Lyon train station (both paintings can still be seen there in this restaurant still in activity).He was supported by several patrons, among them General Malesherbes and Marie-Louis Gassier, the owner of company Berger, a producer of pastis. In 1948, twelve years after his death, Marseille's Musée Cantini dedicated an exhibition to his centenary, displaying eighty-two of his paintings.
Although relatively little-known outside France - unlike his Marseillais fellow citizen Adolphe Monticelli, Olive is one of Provence's most iconic painters and an emblematic figure of the French marine art movement.
While proud of his Marseille origins, he long remained doubtful of his own painting talent. While proud of his Marseille origins, he long remained doubtful of his own painting talent. His introverted character was in sheer contrast with his artwork's dazzling luminosity.