The Complete Works of Philippe Smit
by Andreas Narzt and Florence Castellani
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Photo: Studio Sebert; © FdDPS
Series
Series: Debussy
Keywords
- Figure composition
: - Landscape
: - night »
- Inspiration
:
Explore catalogue entries
PS 480
"Petite Suite", Homage to Claude Debussy
Alternate titles: Hommage à Claude Debussy; Hommage à Debussy; La fête du 14 juillet; Petite Suite, Hommage à Debussy
1941
Oil on canvas
54 3/16 x 57 7/8 in. (137.5 x 147 cm) (sight size)
Dedicated, signed and dated on the notice on the wall right: Hommage/ à/ mon/ très cher maître/ Claude Debussy/ Fête/ Petite Suite/ Philippe Smit/ 1941
On the back: a metal plate: Lottie Urban on the frame lower left.
Inventories
Inv. Lotty Urban-Leteneur, n.d. [ante 1953], s.n., private archives: no. [04]: p. [1], Toiles: Hommage à Debussy.
Exhibitions
Musée municipal, Noyers-sur-Serein, Yonne, France, Le Mystère Philippe Smit 1886 - 1948, April 01–November 30, 2000, as Petite Suite, Hommage à Debussy.
Literature & Primary Sources
Niehaus, Kasper. "De schilder Philippe Smit: een 'Grote Onbekende.'" Maandblad voor beeldende kunsten n°25 (1949), p. 230; p. 229 ill. in b/w, as Hommage à Claude Debussy.
Niehaus, Kasper. Philippe Smit, unkown genius. Revised and edited by Marjorie Bell. Typescript, 1955, p. 23, as Hommage à Debussy.
Niehaus, Kasper. "Tentoonstelling in Ver. Staten trok de aanacht: Philippe Smit, tegenpool der abstracte Kunst." De Telegraaf (Amsterdam), 08-01-1958, p. 7 ill. in b/w.
Notes
This homage bears witness to the admiration the artist had for Debussy, which René Massé confirms in his journal: "[…] in his room, portrait of Chopin by Delacroix, Debussy, several of Maurice Rollinat, […] Has a record library […] "Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy, Bizet. […]"1
1. "[…] dans sa chambre, portrait de Chopin par Delacroix,/ Debussy, plusieurs de Maurice Rollinat, […] Possède une discothèque […] Beethoven, du Chopin,/ Debussy, Bizet.[…]" (Massé 1920-1935, p. 13 & 14).
Record last updated March 21, 2017. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Narzt, Andreas and Castellani, Florence. ""Petite Suite", Homage to Claude Debussy, 1941 (PS 480)." In The Complete Works of Philippe Smit. www.philippesmit.com/catalogue/entry.php?id=480 (accessed on May 10, 2025).