Édouard Vuillard

Studio of Kerr Xavier Roussel, Paris
Sam Salz, New York
Donald S. Stralem, New York, acquired circa 1954
Thomas Gibson Fine Art, London, acquired circa 1990
Reid and Lefevre, London
Private Collection, Geneva

The Cleveland Museum of Art; New York, The Museum of Modern Art, Édouard Vuillard, 1954, no. 15
New York, Wildenstein, Vuillard, 1964, no. 1
Palm Springs, California, Palm Springs Desert Museum, Collector's Choice, 1976
New York, Galerie Felicie, Vuillard Paintings, Pastels, and Drawings, 1983
London, Thomas Gibson Fine Art, 19th & 20th Century Masters, 1990, no. 10
St. Tropez, Musée de l'Annonciade; Lausanne, Musée Cantonal des Beaux-Arts, Édouard Vuillard. La porte entrebâillée, 2000-2001, no. 4

Antoine Salomon and Guy Cogeval, Vuillard, Critical Catalogue of Paintings and Pastels, Paris, 2003, vol. I, no. I-58, illustrated p. 35

Very good condition. Canvas is striplined. Slight buckling in the canvas in lower right quadrant. Under UV light, there are 5-10 dots of inpainting at lower right corner.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
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In the 1890s, Edouard Vuillard was associated with the group of rebellious artists called Les Nabis, a title taken from the Hebrew name for "prophet."  The group, which included Pierre Bonnard, Maurice Denis, Paul Sérusier, Paul Ranson and Félix Valloton, was influenced by the work of Paul Gauguin.  The aesthetic goal of Les Nabis was to create a purely pictorial art.  Their subjective interpretation of nature depicted simplified forms, flattened perspective and exaggerated colors.

Completed in 1889-90, when the young painter hit his stride as an artist, Jonquilles et bocal eloquently conveys Vuillard's gift with paint and brush.  Vuillard's most successful compositions were executed in small format.  In the present work, the still life is framed by a delicately painted drape and grounded by flat geometric planes of brown and white.  Repeated mauve bands help convey a sense of depth in the composition.  The viewer's eye is drawn to the bright daffodils and the red liquid in the bottle in startling contrast to the darker palette sorrounding them.

Antoine Salomon and Guy Cogeval write about the present work, "This is one of Vuillard's most masterly still lifes, in which he somehow combines the 'minerality' of Fantin-Latour with the solidly built space of Cézanne. The co-existence of the toned-down yellow of the daffodils, the red liquid in the bottle and, above all, the mauve and green harmonies of the light filtering through the curtain combine to make this painting a minor masterpiece" (Antoine Salomon and Guy Cogeval, op. cit., p. 35).

Fig. 1 Edouard Vuillard, Autoportrait, circa 1888-89, oil on canvas, Private Collection