At the end of the 19th century, the Nabis formed a brotherhood of daring young artists who shared a common outlook and admired the work of Gauguin, whose lessons led Paul Sérusier to create the Talisman in 1888.
The ambition of this diverse group of friends was ‘to make art part of life’. They set out to explore a wide range of artistic media, from theatre sets to illustrations, pastels, posters and prints. Beyond the variety of techniques, these works bear witness to the singularity of the themes and style that characterise each of them.
Woman's head (recto); Landscape (verso) (4e quart 19e siècle ; 1er quart 20e siècle) by SÉRUSIER PaulMuseum of Pont-Aven
Paul Sérusier the ‘Nabi with the gleaming beard'
Paul Sérusier, one of the founders of the Nabis group, attached particular importance to the female figure throughout his work. In the Breton women, he tried to capture in a few lines the characteristic shapes of the face to create an archetype.
Study of rocks with color annotations (4e quart 19e siècle ; 1er quart 20e siècle) by SÉRUSIER PaulMuseum of Pont-Aven
From 1888, Sérusier adopted the synthesis of pure forms and colours. He remained faithful to synthesism throughout his life, theorising his thinking and his chromatic research.
Each element of the composition, each colour, has a place that is determined and thought out from the design stage, as this very small format reveals.
Boaters at sunset (vers 1899) by RIPPL-RÓNAI JózsefMuseum of Pont-Aven
József Rippl-Rónai the ‘Hungarian Nabi
In 1899, Rippl-Rónai spent several months in Banyuls-sur-mer with another Nabi, his friend Aristide Maillol. It was probably there that he painted this landscape, which features Catalan boats, a common sight in the region.
Study of sky, sea and waves (Vers 1905) by Georges LacombeMuseum of Pont-Aven
Georges Lacombe the "Nabi Sculptor"
The sea was an important theme to the artist, who had, since 1888, regularly spent summers in Finistère. Lacombe's verses express his vision quite well: "The sea traces its magnificent networks, its lacework of scales and bird feathers, as if for pleasure".
In 1894, Lacombe produced a series of four paintings on the seasons to decorate the salon of Gabrielle Wenger, whose daughter Marthe he married in 1897.
Only two paintings survive: 'Spring’ and ‘Autumn'. The Pont-Aven museum has several studies of the figures in these works.
The Emmaus Pilgrims (1895) by DENIS MauriceMuseum of Pont-Aven
Maurice Denis, the "Nabi of beautiful icons"
Denis was keen to renew sacred art and aesthetics, with clean-cut shapes and solid colours. This lithography was inspired by an oil on canvas produced the same year by the artist
Denis and Beltrand
It was in 1897 that the wood engraver Jacques Beltrand met Maurice Denis. His first visit to Brittany in 1903 was an opportunity to meet up again with the painter, with whom he had become friends. This reunion marked the beginning of their artistic collaboration.
The Three Bathers (1894) by VALLOTTON FélixMuseum of Pont-Aven
The Bathers by Félix Vallotton
In 1892, the Swiss painter Vallotton joined the Nabis group, hence his nickname "the foreign Nabi". He stayed in Brittany in 1897. After his marriage, he took up new themes such as female nudes and large-scale mythological paintings.
This xylography was published in 1894 in La Revue blanche, a literary and artistic journal with anarchist leanings, published from 1889 to 1903. This periodical did much to publicise the art of the Nabis. Vallotton was one of its most frequent contributors.
The Stretched Reader (1894) by RANSON PaulMuseum of Pont-Aven
Paul Ranson, the "Nabi more Japanese than the Japanese Nabi"
This work, printed in olive green in an edition of one hundred, was produced for the hors-texte No. 37 of ‘La Revue Blanche’ in November 1894. It incorporates several decorative patterns from earlier works.
Study for "Christ and Buddha (1890) by RANSON PaulMuseum of Pont-Aven
Study for "Christ and Buddha" by Paul Ranson
This pastel sums up the art of Ranson who, like the other Nabis, was driven by philosophical and religious questions.
Portrait of a Palestinian woman (1910) by VERKADE JanMuseum of Pont-Aven
Jan Verkade the "Obelisk Nabi"
Verkade joined the Nabis group in 1891. His ceaseless quest for new spaces led him to Brittany, where he followed the footsteps of Gauguin with Ballin. His attraction to spirituality led him to the priesthood in 1902.
Landscape of Palestine (1910) by VERKADE JanMuseum of Pont-Aven
With Filiger, in 1892, he carried out plastic research on colours, lines and shadows.
His murals adorn the walls of churches in Switzerland and Jerusalem.
The Church in Saint-Nolff (vers 1892) by BALLIN MogensMuseum of Pont-Aven
Mogens Ballin the "Danish Nabi"
Ballin stayed at Saint-Nolff in Morbihan in the summer of 1892 with his friend Jan Verkade. It was there that the artist converted to Catholicism.
This highly synthetic landscape is drawn with a brush and coloured with gouache. The flat areas of colour, surrounded by serpentine lines, form undulating trees.
The church, in blue and white tones and briefly sketched, is the focal point to which the eye is naturally drawn.
L'Assomption by Hannele Mattern / program for free theater (1893) by SÉRUSIER PaulMuseum of Pont-Aven
The Nabis and Theatre
The enthusiasm of the avant-garde theatres echoed the Nabis desire to go beyond easel painting. The illustrated programmes, often with original lithographs, helped to give a better understanding of the plays presented and kept a record of these performances.
Hérakléa, program for Théâtre de l'Oeuvre (1895) by SÉRUSIER PaulMuseum of Pont-Aven
Paul Sérusier illustrated this “Théâtre de l'Œuvre” program for Auguste Villeroy's play Hérakléa, which premiered on March 17, 1896.
The Sunken Bell (1897) by RANSON PaulMuseum of Pont-Aven
Ranson also lent himself to the exercise, and for the Théâtre de l'Œuvre, he designed the program (and set) for Hauptmann's play La Cloche engloutie. In the spirit of Art Nouveau, the artist multiplied arabesques, turning the woman in her toilette into a decorative motif.
As early as 1896, Paul Sérusier was involved in the set design of plays
performed in the Châteauneuf-du-Faou patronage. This Middle Eastern-inspired decorcould have been used for a Nativity scene or a flight into Egypt. The work bears witness to the Nabis constant desire to go beyond easel painting.
Contributors :
Sophie Kervran, Director and Chief Curator of the Museums
Camille Armandary, Head of Exhibitions / Communications / Documentary and Digital Resources
Amélie Ouedraogo, trainee in the second year of her Master's degree in Museology
