Pierre Bonnard

Original Prints: Lithographs

A major figure of the Nabis movement, Pierre Bonnard (1867 - 1947) first gained fame for his lithographs and posters in the early 1890s, serving as inspiration for Toulouse-Lautrec, among others.

Far from academic considerations, and drawing on the clarity of Japanese prints (whence his nickname "Bonnard le Japonard"), his graphic style was spare and casual, characterised by bold design layouts, using refined tonal values and textures to evoke the bustle of urban life or the warm intimacy of an interior.

Les Chiens Roger-Marx 25; Bouvet 25 lithograph, 1893, the only known state, a signed and numbered impression of this delightful work. Bonnard's first contribution to L'Escarmouche (a widely-read satirical weekly magazine), is also his most playful, the casually cavorting dogs is echoed by the deft handling of a lithographic brush

Le Verger The Orchard Roger-Marx 48; Bouvet 56 color lithograph, 1899, the extremely rare first state (not described by Roger-Marx or Bouvet), a very fine trial proof, with variant colours, before the edition of 100 that was published in Germinal, Album des XX estampes originales, by Julius Meier-Graefe. Bonnard had aready experimented with five-colour lithography and this chromatic variant of the print shows a vibrant blue replacing the black of the published version, which results in a brighter and more refined composition.

Maison dans le Cour House in the Courtyard Roger-Marx 59; Bouvet 61 color lithograph, 1899, the extremely rare first state (summarily described by Roger-Marx and Bouvet), a very fine trial proof, and before the edition of 100 that was published in the album Quelques Aspects de la Vie de Paris, by Ambroise Vollard. Bonnard's project with Ambrois Vollard was his most ambitious to date, illustrating various aspects of Parisian life at the turn of the century. This working proof further comprises additional pencil rework over the window panes, the shutters added on the left, and other various detailing.

Parallèlement Roger-Marx 94; Bouvet 73 109 colour lithographs in rose-sanguine, 1900, the only known states, a unbound proof copy of this exceptional work, with several of the rare bistre-coloured variants (as shown here). Bonnard's lithographs for Ambroise Vollard's landmak edition of Verlaine's Parallèlement, remarkably provocative, were to revolutionize the art of the illustrated book.

Femme debout dans sa Baignoire Woman standing in her Bath Roger-Marx 81; Bouvet 94 lithograph, 1925, the 3rd state (of 4), signed by the artist, numbered, on fine chine volant paper, one of only a few such impressions on this paper for the edition of 25 in this state. In the early 1920s, living at Le Cannet in the south of France, Bonnard executed several lithographs for the publisher Edmond Frapier, of which this is one of the most remarkable.

Paysage du Midi Landscape in the Midi Roger-Marx 82; Bouvet 95 lithograph, 1925, the 3rd state (of 4), signed by the artist and stamped by the publisher as a trial proof, one of only a few such impressions before the edition of 25 in this state. In the early 1920s, living at Le Cannet in the south of France, Bonnard executed several lithographs for the publisher Edmond Frapier, of which this is his only landscape.         next artist  >