Pierre Bonnard

Estate of the artist
Arthur Tooth & Sons, London (acquired by 1969)
Private Collection
Acquired from the above by the present owner

London, Arthur Tooth & Sons, Pierre Bonnard, 1969, no. 24, illustrated in colour in the catalogue

Jean & Henry Dauberville, Bonnard Catalogue raisonné de l'œuvre peint, 1920-1939, Paris, vol. IV, 1974, no. 01907, illustrated p. 258

Executed on cradled panel, the panel is sound. There appear to be some light retouchings to the edges of the work, visible under UV light. There is an area of uneven fluorescence to the sky, probably due to an uneven varnish. Apart from some light paint losses, mainly to the extreme upper edge, this work is in very good condition.
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In the present work, painted circa 1907, Pierre Bonnard continues his career-long exploration of the creative possibilities presented by the subjective perception of light and colour. Painted during a visit to Vernouillet, this brilliant landscape is dominated by the vast expanses of fields and sky, allowing the viewer only a glimpse of the village as our eye is drawn to the centrally placed steeple immersed in a saturated sky.  This bold, iridescent atmosphere, combined with the golden-tipped wheat field, rich green grass spotted with violet, and shadowy vegetation is exemplary of Bonnard's painting at the time. 

Each colour area occupies its own carefully delineated space within the composition, demonstrating the flat decorative style that characterised the art of the Nabis. Maurice Denis, who vocalised many of the Nabis' artistic principles, conveyed his belief that a painting should consist of 'a flat surface covered with colours arranged in a certain order' (quoted in Pierre Bonnard: Observing Nature (exhibition catalogue), National Gallery of Australia, Canberra, 2003, p. 48) – an approach clearly reflected by the present work. Colour, above all other compositional elements, was vital for the communication of the artist's emotion. While the village depicted in the present work is not represented for its unique architecture or defining characteristics, the area undoubtedly made an impact upon Bonnard as he would move there five years later, capturing the colours of this pastoral idyll for years to come.