1954.29 Bonnard, Conversation

Pierre Bonnard experts are not immune to the difficult legibility of this lithograph. Two prominent scholars identified the image as a portrait of a solitary man before Francis Bouvet, author of the catalogue raisonné of Bonnard's prints, pointed out that the man is not alone. A woman's face appears amidst the elaborate markings of her hairstyle and collar.

Made this a text entry:Conflicting information about the image's appearance in the French periodical, "L'Escarmouche" (first issue November 12, 1893 and last issue January 14, 1894). Ives (1989) says this object was published, Bouvet (1981) says it was intended for publication but was not. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Félix Vallotton also contributed illustrations. The periodical helped strengthen Pierre Bonnard's association with Féneon, and laid the groundwork for the types of images he produced for "La Revue Blanche". [See objects 2000.218.FA, 2006.47.1, and 2006.47.13.]

Due to time constraints I was unable to add the following image to Piction as an image asset. The web link to MoMA will provide the recto view of this study and may help users decipher the lithograph.

A study for Conversation may assist in deciphering the contours of the two figures. As shown above, Bonnard often traced his drawings multiple times on the recto and verso of pages. This process helped him refine the compositions, but it also enables us to see the faces of an aggressive man and a cowering female in a seemingly contentious "conversation."

Pierre Bonnard, Study for Conversation, 1893. Ink and wash over pencil (verso), 311 x 245 mm, MoMA, The Joan and Lester Avnet Collection. Image pulled from the catalogue, Pierre Bonnard: The Graphic Art, (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1989), page 13.

publication

handlebar mustache

derbies (hats)

faces

man

woman

profile

tracery

hair ornament

hairstyle

tracings

monocles

magazine

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