Pierre Bonnard: Painting Arcadia

I was so happy to hear that a new exhibit of one of my top favorite painters, Pierre Bonnard, was opening up at the Legion of Honor! He’s known as one of the Nabis, a Post-Impressionist movement where the the flattened perspective of Japanese art, the stylization of Art Nouveau, the use of pattern as a decorative element and the exploration of non-local color were early hallmarks.

Photograph of Pierre Bonnard - Legion of Honor- Marie Cameron - photo OP 2016

I love this big, beautiful, blown-up photograph of Pierre Bonnard in a room full of very intimate, tiny photos of the artist and his wife. So interesting to see these mysterious little moments emerge from the darkness in such contrast to his small and very large canvases that are flooded with light and color!

 

Bonnard photograph of Marthe Bonnard - Legion of Honor                                     Bonnard photograph of Marthe Bathing - Legion of Honor                                    Bonnard Examining Leaves - photograph by Marthe Bonnard -1900 - 1 Legion of Honor

 

Pierre Bonnard - Women in the Garden (Woman in Dress with White Dots, Seated Woman with Cat, Woman in Cape, Woman in Checkered Dress) 1890-91 - distemper on paper mounted on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

You can clearly see the decorative stylized elements in his early pieces, Woman in Dress with White Dots, Seated Woman with Cat, Woman in Cape, Woman in Checkered Dress 1890-91. Close up you can see the simple laying in of paint stokes over the tan substrate.

Pierre Bonnard - Woman in Checkered Dress (detail) 1890-91 - distemper on paper mounted on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

Woman in Checkered Dress (detail)     1890-91     distemper on paper mounted on canvas

Pierre Bonnard - Seated Woman with Cat (face detail) 1890-91 - distemper on paper mounted on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

Seated Woman with Cat (face detail)    1890-91    distemper on paper mounted on canvas

Pierre Bonnard - Seated Woman with Cat (cat detail) 1890-91 - distemper on paper mounted on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

Seated Woman with Cat (detail)     1890-91     distemper on paper mounted on canvas

Pierre Bonnard - Legion of Honor - In the Garden (detail) - oil - 1895 - photo Marie Cameron 2016

Here in this detail from this 1895 oil painting, In the Garden loose, gestural strokes are applied to a green ground.

Pierre Bonnard - The Checkered Blouse - 1892 - oil on canvas - (detail)- Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

In this detail  from the 1892 painting, The Checkered Blouse,  bits of the canvas can be seen under thickly applied daubs of paint.

Pierre Bonnard - On the Boat - 1907 - oil on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

This wall sized oil on canvas, On the Boat from 1907 features both the light filled, almost patterned landscape and the face in deep shadow in the foreground.

Pierre Bonnard - On the Boat - 1907 - oil on canvas - (duck detail)- Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

Charming duck detail.

Pierre Bonnard - On the Boat - 1907 - oil on canvas - (bird detail)- Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

This detail of the birds in the trees shows how loosely the paint is applied.

Pierre Bonnard - Nude in an Interior - 1912-14 - oil on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

One of the most arresting pieces in the exhibit, Nude in an Interior from 1912-14 uses elements of the interior (walls and tables) to radically crop the figure in a daring and partially voyeuristic manner. Color pulsates and shimmers with its mix of varied hues.

Pierre Bonnard - Pink Nude, Head in Shadow - 1919 - oil on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

Pink Nude, Head in Shadow from 1919  just glows in juxtaposition to the deep shadow across the face. I’m in love with that lavender pink stipe against al those shades of pale yellow and mint.

Pierre Bonnard - Nude in the Bathtub - 1925 - oil on canvas- photo Marie Cameron 2016

In Nude in the Bathtub from 1925 we are introduced to one of Bonnard’s most celebrated motifs, the bather and bathtub, seen here in an almost bird’s eye view.  I could  look at all those gorgeous mottled pastels forever…

Pierre Bonnard - The Bath - 1925- oil on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

In The Bath from 1925 we again see the play of the color of flesh as seen through water.

Pierre Bonnard - Work Table - 1926- 1937 - oil on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

In the Work Table dated 1926-1937 we see the up tilted perspective on a domestic scene with pattern color and pets – classic!

Pierre Bonnard - The Boxer (Portrait of the Artist) -1931- oil on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

The Boxer (Portrait of the Artist) −1931 is a bit of a departure, the lack of a setting allows the viewer a deeper focus of the figure’s expression and gesture, the face again thrown into shadow and surfaces loose and luminous.

Pierre Bonnard - Yellow Harmony - 1934 - oil on canvas - Legion of Honor - photo Marie Cameron 2016

Yellow Harmony from 1934 achieves an almost abstract quality, it’s supersaturated color dematerializes the figure which is absorbed into the composition as just another structural element.

Pierre Bonnard: Painting Arcadia is a major show of more than 70 works that span his prolific career, this post only represents some of my favorites, I hope you’ll take in the exhibit before it closes May 15 and spend some time with your own picks!