Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Vuillard and the Silhouette

"Interior with Women Sewing"
Oil on Canvas, 15 7/8 x 12 11/16 inches
Édouard Vuillard, 1893 


Faithful readers know that Édouard Vuillard is one of my favorite painters, and one who greatly inspires me.  I've been revisiting some of his work, and exploring his use of the silhouette.  Truly masterful!  


The top image is variously called "Interior with Women Sewing" or "L'Aiguilée" ("The Needle").  Oh, wow, I can just feel that hand with the needle pulling the thread taut.  The central figure has such a strong gesture.  There are actually three women in this painting, but the silhouettes of the ones on the left serve merely to bring you eye to the main actor in the center.  It's a masterpiece of composition and sparing use of shapes.


"Beneath the Lamp"
Oil on Canvas, 12 1/2 x 15 3/4 inches
Édouard Vuillard, 1892

The next one is also full of lessons for us lesser mortals.  There is a lot of "busy-ness" in the interior decor, but the power of the two female silhouettes create unity and harmony.  There are a lot of lost edges, where the women's silhouettes fade right into the darkness of the room.  As a result, only partial silhouettes remain.  And even then, they are so powerful!  I also think the silhouettes of the chairs are wonderful compositional tools.  They define the area of interest, and bring our eye in a circle. 


"Seamstress"
Oil on Panel, 9 1/4 x 13 1/2 inches
Édouard Vuillard, 1892-95


And the silhouette doesn't need to be blackened.  This last painting shows how a simple, un-modeled figure in silhouette can anchor a painting.  Again, the interior space is replete with details and small shapes of color.  Almost dizzying to the eye.  But the solid form of the central figure holds everything together.  Such a beautiful piece of magic.

If you are interested in more about silhouettes, and especially Vuillard's, check out this post from a few years ago.  Happy reading! 





Tuesday, February 7, 2023

Museum Moment!



Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Sketchbook Inspiration

Double Page Spread from Prendergast Sketchbook


Every year I resolve to be more faithful in my sketchbook practice.  This year, I have fueled enthusiasm for my resolution by revisiting another artist's sketchbook--one that was kept by Maurice Prendergast around 1899.  I happened on this little treasure in a used book store, and couldn't resist bringing it home.  It's an exact reproduction of the actual sketchbook kept by Prendergast.  (The original has been donated to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts).  My book lay fallow for a while, but when I eventually delved in, I was delighted.


From Prendergast Sketchbook, 1899


The pages in the Prendergast book are a delight of color and motion--as the accompanying material says, "fleeting impressions of...women  in holiday garb...the edge of the sea, sunlit parks and woodlands....gay parasols over extravagant bonnets".  The Gilded Age, indeed!  The book has both watercolors and pencil drawings.




Interestingly, a number of the watercolors were painted on separate sheets, and afterwards attached to the pages of the sketchbook.  I felt a kinship with Prendergast when I learned that--it sounded like something I might do, rather than plunging right into the sketchbook itself.  Was he cautious about wasting pages of the sketchbook on drawings that didn't work out?  Did he choose the watercolors to attach to the sketchbook because they were the most accomplished (leaving out the rejects, so the book would be pretty)? Or did he choose them because they were seeds of ideas for further paintings, and he wanted to keep them front of mind, and close at hand?




Nevermind the answer to those questions.  The important thing is the practice of keeping the sketchbook. I did some further research online, and was especially inspired by Prendergast's sketches from Paris, like the top image in this post.  I'm planning a trip to Paris this year, and the sketchbook will definitely go with me.  Mine may never be part of a museum collection, but it will still be a treasure to me!