Fleury Chenu artwork • painting • previously for sale A snowy day at the Hotel-Dieu in Lyon

Fleury Chenu spent his childhood in the high-altitude French town of Briançon, where he developed a lifelong love for snow scenes. In 1846 his family moved to Lyon. Chenu attended the École Nationale des Beaux-arts and took part in local exhibitions from the age of 21, unable to make a name for himself outside of Lyon. This changed when he was allowed to exhibit his work at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1867. He then became known for a series of genre performances of life in and around Lyon, of which the French state bought two. This may have involved the purchase in 1870 of the painting 'Les Traînards effet de neige', which is in the possession of the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. Fleury Chenu is best known for his snowy landscapes and snowy cityscapes, which earned him the nickname 'peintre de la neige' [snow painter].