TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE

You may remember that when I was writing a chapter following my visit to the Louis Vuitton Foundation recently, that a painting of Pierre Bonnard’s had impressed me. I decided to go and see the retrospective with Marielle. 

Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947) has always suggested naked women in bathroom scenes - and there are a lot of them.


However, there are  other subjects as well. The exhibition present a selection of works from every period of Bonnard’s career. There were nine sections which I will not be following but it is quite obvious that when one wanders through the different periods of his life, that he is cheerful and positive with a very colorful vision of what the world is all about. Landscapes, portraits, nudes and still life (which really still does not interest me very much) are full of hope.

Sunset - the Croquet game - 1891

Lunch under a lamp - 1897


The Loge (like Toulouse Lautrec) 1908

Marthe and the white table cloth 1926

Pleasure

Before the beginning of World War I, Bonnard traveled extensively throughout Europe and North Africa, although his paintings were not indicative of his experiences there. The same went for the trials and tribulations of World War I, of which there is no reference in his paintings.  I made this remark to Marielle finding it very strange that there were no paintings at all of his travels. Bonnard continued to create major exhibitions of his work, traveling to the United States, commissioned to paint the French pavilion at the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1937. His last painting, The Almond Tree in Flower, was painted a week before his death in 1947.
The Almond Tree - 1947

He was nicknamed « a very Japanese Nabi » (the Nabis group was made up of a number of artists - revolutionary- They paved the way for the early 20th-century development of abstract and non-representational art, and had in common with the most progressive artists of the time the goal of integrating art and daily life . This is very true of Bonnard as from picture to picture, each one seems to be more perfect than the other.


Intimité 1891

the composer Claude Terasse and his 2 sons - 1902/03

The Bernheim Brothers (one seems to be very chic and the other casual) - 1920

Landscape ?

Trouville - going out of the port - 1936-45

Meridional Landscape : Le Cannet - 1928

Corner of the Dining Room in the Cannet - 1932

Corner of the table - 1935


The Garden - 1928 (?)

Bathers at the end of the day - 1945


The Steep path at Cannet -1945


 Bonnard was quite obviously influenced by Gaugin and Matisse.


Stolen photo but could be Matisse?



He certainly was recognized and influential Parisians or other ordered paintings. Misia « La belle Parisienne » ( http://discovmaggsie.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/misia-beauty-perhaps-but-at-end-alone.htmlhttp://discovmaggsie.blogspot.com.au/2012/08/misia-beauty-perhaps-but-at-end-alone.html) ordered a series of silk screen which I would have found rather difficult to live with.


The trip - but no date

One of his family scenes I found very funny indeed. Very naif in my book.


The Terrasse Family- 1900
An evening next to a lamp - 1921
Another, I tried to put my hand in the same position as the subject - it was impossible. Marielle had the same problem.




There were some paintings that we could not take a photo of (I managed to take a couple without being caught) but one of his self portraits as a boxer made me feel quite sorry for him. His face seemed to have lost the lust for life.



The Boxer - 1931

No-one can forget his cats and dogs either. In fact I'm sure everyone knows this cat. He always makes me smile. 


Ajouter une légende

The Demanding Cat - 1912



Of course there were paintings depicting women washing themselves. They are natural. Again, everything seems to be perfect between the artist and his model. Most of the time it was Marthe (who finally became his wife after more than ten years of « friendship » to the detriment of his mistress Renée who committed suicide a few weeks after the wedding in August 1925).


Women dozing on her bed - 1899

The toiletery table - 1908

Bathing - 1932

Man and woman - 1900

Everything seems to be harmonious. Life is very good and yet somehow I found his work unsatisfying. Is gushy the word for it? It all seems to be too good to be true.


Pleasure - no date

A decorative miror

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Not sure we're going to bother with this one.
13/5/15 10:14
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