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拍品专文
Thadée Natanson dans son bureau à La Revue Blanche is an exquisite Nabis picture painted by Edouard Vuillard in 1898, during the most mature phase of his involvement within this group of young radical artists.
The Nabis were a close-knit group, drawn together around 1888 by a new and subversive aesthetic. It was at that time that Maurice Denis, Paul Sérusier, Pierre Bonnard, Felix Vallotton, a 20 year old Edouard Vuillard and others started to meet in Paul Ranson’s studio, known to them as ‘the Temple’. Each of the Nabis (Hebrew for ‘prophets’) had his own nickname: Vuillard, for instance, was known as ‘le Nabi zouave’: his red hair and beard were reminiscent of the members of the Zouave French regiment.
Underneath their unconventional and jovial ways and hidden behind their coded language, the young artists shared firmly held and unwavering artistic beliefs. Inspired by Medieval stained glass and by Japanese prints, they sought to eliminate all forms of traditional perspective from their works, applying colour in blocks of mat pigments often surrounded by minimal, arabesque lines. The result was one of embellished stylisation, a superbly decorative effect often enhanced by the use of elaborate patterns and creative mixing of colours.
In this sense, the present picture presents itself as a prime example of Nabi technique in its most developed form: the black silhouette of its protagonist, off centred and turning his back to his viewers, stands against a richly decorated wallpaper. On the bookshelf to his right, the pastel coloured spines of countless volumes rendered in quick and rich brushstrokes perfectly balance the specks of colours that make up the pattern of the wallpaper. Here, we are witnessing one of the most confident expressions of Vuillard’s own interpretation of the Nabis technique.
The subject of an interior, with its wallpaper and brightly coloured lights, perfectly showcased Vuillard’s skills, as is oftentimes the case with Nabis artists. However, it must be stressed that this is not just any interior: the scene depicted here shows Thadée Nathanson, one of the most (if not the most) fierce supporter of the Nabis, hard at work in the offices of La Revue Blanche, the periodical he founded in 1891, a propelling force in the promotion of the group. Nathanson (along with his wife Misia) were one of the most well-loved subjects of the Nabis; either concentrated on work, as shown here, or comfortably sitting in their living room at Rue Saint Florentin (as depicted in Vuillard’s Le Salon aux trois lamped, Rue Saint Florentin (1899), Musée D’Orsay).
The Nabis’ depiction of their supporters hard at work, such as the one shown here, is not uncommon in their choice of subjects. Two years prior to the painting of this work, for instance, Félix Vallotton had rendered Félix Fénéon, the influential art critic, gallerist and anarchist, writing in the same offices as the ones shown here. Both these works convey a strong feeling of kinship: when looking at them the viewer, like the artist, feels not just like an onlooker, but more a companion keeping company to his friend.
Both in style and subject, the present work represents a unique testament to the Nabis, their artistic theories and to the unique bonds created by these remarkable individuals.
The Nabis were a close-knit group, drawn together around 1888 by a new and subversive aesthetic. It was at that time that Maurice Denis, Paul Sérusier, Pierre Bonnard, Felix Vallotton, a 20 year old Edouard Vuillard and others started to meet in Paul Ranson’s studio, known to them as ‘the Temple’. Each of the Nabis (Hebrew for ‘prophets’) had his own nickname: Vuillard, for instance, was known as ‘le Nabi zouave’: his red hair and beard were reminiscent of the members of the Zouave French regiment.
Underneath their unconventional and jovial ways and hidden behind their coded language, the young artists shared firmly held and unwavering artistic beliefs. Inspired by Medieval stained glass and by Japanese prints, they sought to eliminate all forms of traditional perspective from their works, applying colour in blocks of mat pigments often surrounded by minimal, arabesque lines. The result was one of embellished stylisation, a superbly decorative effect often enhanced by the use of elaborate patterns and creative mixing of colours.
In this sense, the present picture presents itself as a prime example of Nabi technique in its most developed form: the black silhouette of its protagonist, off centred and turning his back to his viewers, stands against a richly decorated wallpaper. On the bookshelf to his right, the pastel coloured spines of countless volumes rendered in quick and rich brushstrokes perfectly balance the specks of colours that make up the pattern of the wallpaper. Here, we are witnessing one of the most confident expressions of Vuillard’s own interpretation of the Nabis technique.
The subject of an interior, with its wallpaper and brightly coloured lights, perfectly showcased Vuillard’s skills, as is oftentimes the case with Nabis artists. However, it must be stressed that this is not just any interior: the scene depicted here shows Thadée Nathanson, one of the most (if not the most) fierce supporter of the Nabis, hard at work in the offices of La Revue Blanche, the periodical he founded in 1891, a propelling force in the promotion of the group. Nathanson (along with his wife Misia) were one of the most well-loved subjects of the Nabis; either concentrated on work, as shown here, or comfortably sitting in their living room at Rue Saint Florentin (as depicted in Vuillard’s Le Salon aux trois lamped, Rue Saint Florentin (1899), Musée D’Orsay).
The Nabis’ depiction of their supporters hard at work, such as the one shown here, is not uncommon in their choice of subjects. Two years prior to the painting of this work, for instance, Félix Vallotton had rendered Félix Fénéon, the influential art critic, gallerist and anarchist, writing in the same offices as the ones shown here. Both these works convey a strong feeling of kinship: when looking at them the viewer, like the artist, feels not just like an onlooker, but more a companion keeping company to his friend.
Both in style and subject, the present work represents a unique testament to the Nabis, their artistic theories and to the unique bonds created by these remarkable individuals.