Louis SOUTTER (1871-1942), "Raisin of Canaan", Indian ink on lined paper, titled and annotated "Raisin and poutraison" on the back. H. 22 x 17.4 cm On a daily basis, in his notebooks and sketchbooks, Soutter developed drawings based on nature, with varying degrees of detail or in the form of sketches. In this drawing, Soutter dwells on the material of wood, for which he develops a graphic style that he applies to the bunch of grapes. The title, added in pencil: "Grapes of Canaan", gives this drawing a religious dimension. Like all the residents of the Hospice for the Elderly and Destitute, Soutter was obliged to attend daily religious services given by the Darbyist managers of the establishment. This daily spiritual immersion seems to have nurtured in him an ambivalent relationship with religion, influencing his questioning and even criticism of certain subjects relating to it. Through the title attributed to this life drawing, Soutter reminds us that part of the biblical story, in particular the biblical episode of Canaan, to which he refers, reflects or is inspired by human dramas. Julie Borgeaud Condition: very minor edgewear Provenance Collection H.-L. Mermod, then Madame Françoise Mermod, then Catherine Clerc-de Goumoëns Lausanne References Bibliography Michel THEVOZ, "Louis Soutter: Catalogue de l'œuvre", Edition L'Âge d'homme, Zurich, work reproduced on page 82, ref. 617.