Madame Bonnard

1895/1900

Edouard Vuillard

Associated Names
Edouard Vuillard

Painter, French, 1868 - 1940

This painting shows the upper half of a woman's body, focusing on her face, head, and large hat. The woman's body is slightly turned toward the right, but she is looking directly at us. She has fair skin with areas of light pink on her cheeks and forehead, and her facial features are soft, including brown eyes, a small mouth, and dark, curly hair put up under a wide-brimmed hat. The hat has vibrant, abstract patterns in teal, tan, and black. The woman is wearing a dark-colored garment with a high collar. The background is made of light gray and white lines of paint. The brushstrokes in the painting are thick and visible, and in some areas, like the woman's hat and face as well as the background, the light brown color of the surface beneath the paint is visible.

Media Options

This object’s media is free and in the public domain. Read our full Open Access policy for images.
On View

East Building Ground Level, Gallery E103


Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on cardboard

  • Credit Line

    Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon

  • Dimensions

    overall: 41.7 x 31.9 cm (16 7/16 x 12 9/16 in.)
    framed: 63.5 x 53.3 x 5.4 cm (25 x 21 x 2 1/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1995.47.13


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Pierre Bonnard [1867-1947]; (his estate sale, Galerie Charpentier, Paris, 23 February 1954, no. 30). Sir Alexander Korda; (his sale, Sotheby's, London, 14 June 1962, no. 31); purchased through (Hector Brame, Paris) by Mr. Paul Mellon, Upperville, VA;[1] gift 1995 to NGA.
[1]See Paul Mellon files now in NGA curatorial records.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1966

  • French Paintings from the Collections of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon and Mrs. Mellon Bruce, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1966, no. 183, repro.

2012

  • Bonnard Among Friends. Matisse, Monet, Vuillard..., Musée Bonnard, Le Cannet, 2012, no. 6, repro.

Bibliography

1966

  • Goldwater, Robert. "The Glory that was France." Art News 65 (March 1966): 42, repro.

2003

  • Salomon, Antoine, and Guy Cogeval. Vuillard, The Inexhaustible Glance: Critical Catalogue of Paintings and Pastels. 3 vols. Milan and Paris, 2003: 2:no. VI-417, repro., as Marthe Bonnard Wearing a Hat.

Inscriptions

upper left: à Bonnard / EVuillard

Wikidata ID

Q20190494

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