France: Paintings by Berthe Morisot
Nushin Namazi, who has just returned from Washington, D.C., writes about her visit to the National Museum of Women in the Arts, of whose existence I was unaware: I had the good fortune of seeing the Berthe Morisot rare collection of impressionistic painting from the turn of the century exhibited -- a rarity as the entire collection is housed in a small museum in France, and it was the first time on display in America. Although I have seen a few pieces by Monet at Canter Arts Museum in Stanford, I had not heard of Berthe Morisot until today. I was struck by the beautiful and bright colorful paintings of landscapes, seascapes, gardens, and tender paintings of her daughter, husband, and other family members. She drew 800 paintings and, unlike Monet and other artists, she did not sell them for two reasons: 1) she did not need the money and 2) she did not think they were good enough. But her paintings did inspire Monet and her contemporaries. She was also the only women in her generation to continue painting after she was married and painted her husband (Manet) in front of a window during their honeymoon (on display at the museum). Also, at the time, women were allowed to paint women only and so her paintings reflect this. When she passed away, her family donated the entire collection to Musee Marmottan-Monet in Paris. Have you or WAISers seen her paintings? Below, is a description of her work and life from the Museum's website:
Impressionism is arguably the world's most popular art movement. Berthe Morisot: An Impressionist and Her Circle establishes the artist as a central figure of the movement, showing her paintings, prints, watercolors, and drawings alongside those of her more recognized male colleagues: Edouard Manet, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Claude Monet. Visitors will be able to view more than 75 works—about 15 of them by her artistic circle and her daughter, Julie—drawn from one of the most important French collections of avant-garde painting, the Denis and Annie Rouart Collection, and on display for the first time in the U.S. Bequeathed to the Musée Marmottan-Monet in Paris in 1997, some of these works date from the artist's original collecting efforts.
Morisot succeeded as a professional artist, despite society’s expectations for women from respectable upper-middle-class families, to acquire artistic training as a genteel hobby. Her budding artistic talent, and that of her older sister Edma, was nurtured by visits to the Louvre to copy masterpieces and painting out of doors under the direction of legendary landscape painter Camille Corot. She first exhibited at the illustrious annual Salon in 1864, at the age of 23, and continued to participate through 1873 despite the fact that her sister eventually married, thereby giving up her own artistic career. However, Edma, her mother, and other women close to her continued to provide Morisot with the strength and companionship that enabled her boldly to defy convention for the sake of her art. Their influence is also apparent in the numerous images that Morisot painted of her mother, sisters, and nieces, as well as of her own daughter Julie, to whom she gave birth in 1878, and who would become her favorite model and painting companion. Carefully composed, these studies not only highlight Morisot’s abilities but confirm the lifelong inspiration she drew from these women.
RH: I knew the Musée Marmottan before 1997, so I have not seen her paintings. My three-volume Larousse does not mention Marisot.
Speaking of the arts, last weekend we attanded a concert by the Accorda String Quartet. We are pretty close acquaintances of two of the members (the concertmistress of the Kansas City Symphony and her husband, a fine cellist). The music was superb, and I had one of those "moments" when I realized that on the stage were a Lithuainian Jew, A Japanese, a Korean, and a Brit, making great music together. I have seen this kind of coming together only in sports and the arts, and it brought up again the tired and trite old idea that if only the rest of the peoples of the world could be like this......
RH: Don't bring in sports, which are tribal warfare. Music, yes!! It is amazing how the Japanese and the Koreans have mastered Western music.