1890s and the abbey

Moines trappistes; abbaye de Melleray (Loire-Inférieure)
Trappist monks
Exhibited at the Salon in 1897
Photo: Salon catalogue 1897 

Many aspects of Richard Hall's life in the 1890s remain unclear. He reported that he married his cousin Julia Perregaux (in an article written by Mauri R. Hall, her surname is Cornetz) in 1881. She passed away in 1891. The marriage produced son Georges and daughter Agnes. According to the website geni.com they were both born in 1884.

As I mentioned in my blog post about Hall's places of residence, his address was in Le Pouldu in 1890–1893, in Paris in 1894–1896, and in both Nantes and Paris in 1897–1899. I am currently aware of 27 works that Hall produced during those years. Not all of them have photographs. After Hall moved back to Paris, his works were mainly portraits. It was probably then that the development began that led to his successful career as a portrait painter in the following decade.

Working in the abbey

In an interview with the newspaper Uusi Suometar in 1909, Hall said that after his wife's death he had lived near Nantes with the Trappist monks. Hall's paintings of monks were exhibited in Paris salons in 1897 and 1898. The 1897 work was entitled Moines trappistes; abbaye de Melleray (Loire-Inférieure). The Melleray abbey, located about 46 kilometers north of Nantes, was used by Trappist monks at the time. This is probably the abbey Hall was referring to. 

Mauri R. Hall wrote in an article published in Finnis newspaper Satakunnan Kansa in 1975 that Julia Cornetz, who belonged to a Protestant family, converted to Catholicism after a short illness and demanded that her spouse do the same. Thus, Hall became a Catholic. This may explain why he lived in a monastery for eight months. This is how Hall recalls his time at the abbey:


-You know that I lived with the Trappist monks in Nantes for eight months and that...

-The Trappist monks?

-It's a reformed monastic order that now lives a life... without exchanging a single word among each other.

-Is that possible?

-They sleep in their coffins wearing their clothes... and eat only vegetables.

-They sleep fully clothed in their coffins... and eat only vegetables. Their only greeting is: memento mori! (i.e., remember that you will die), and they are very hard-working. They built a special studio for me, where I have painted many of them... You can see one of the Trappist monks here in the exhibition.

It is difficult to write anything about the works painted in the abbey, because only black-and-white, hand-drawn reproductions of them exist. Based on these, it can mainly be said that Hall depicted at least monks practicing their religion.

Moines trappistes en méditation / “Trappist” monks in prayer
Exhibited at the Salon in 1898
Photo: Salon catalogue 1898 

Melleray Abbey

Abbaye de Notre-Dame-de-Melleray Abbey was founded in 1134. It was a Cistercian abbey used by Trappist monks from 1817 to 2016. Today, the abbey is home to a Catholic community Chemin Neuf. The abbey got its name from its founding story, according to which monks searching for a new location for a abbey found a honeycomb in a hollow tree. This provided them with the nourishment they needed. Meilleraie means honeycomb, and over time the name was shortened to Melleray.

During the 19th century, agriculture and other industries were developed at the abbey. A hydroelectric industrial complex was built in the area, employing carpenters, leatherworkers, shoemakers, and bakers, among others. In the middle of the century, the abbey was home to 150 monks, 100 of whom were lay brothers. It was therefore a large community in the countryside of Brittany.

Sources: https://melleray.chemin-neuf.fr/visiter/histoire-de-labbaye/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melleray_Abbey

 

Abbey Notre-Dame de Melleray, La Meilleraye-de-Bretagne (Loire-Atlantique)
Photo: Selbymay, Wikimedia Commons
Licence: CC-BY-SA 3.0