Artists' location
The inn was a popular place for artists to stay. The Lecadre sisters knew how to be “accommodating” to those who found it difficult to pay. In order to benefit from discounts or rebates, the painters would offer them paintings or decorate the inn.
Six of the inn’s doors were painted by artists who stayed at the Auberge Lecadre, including Léon Joubert, Ernest Baillet and Charles Darmeron, all students of Léon-Germain Pelouse. The latter was a mid-nineteenth-century landscape painter whose early work as a traveling sales representative enabled him to discover the different landscapes and villages of France. The Swiss painter Marius Borgeaud, the American Alfred Klots, the Norwegian Harriet Backer and many others stayed here.
Alfred Klots literally fell in love with the village. He was responsible for the town’s revival. He fell under the spell of Rochefort-en-Terre on his first visit in 1903, and in 1907 decided to buy the ruins of the old medieval castle. He rebuilt a new château on the 17th-century outbuildings (including the old stables). The Klots shared their lives between America and Rochefort-en-Terre, where they invited many artists. Alfred Klots was very involved in local life, and in 1911, he created the 1st flowery windows competition, which over time became the “villages in bloom” competition. He stimulated the Rochefort community’s taste for their heritage, laying the foundations for a tourist industry.
Auberge Lecadre Rochefort En Terre Postcard
