The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 21, 2024

The Plaid Dress

The Plaid Dress

1926
(French, 1867–1947)
France
oil on canvas
Unframed: 77.2 x 46.4 cm (30 3/8 x 18 1/4 in.)
Promised Gift of Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley 8.2020
© Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Bonnard's patterned fabrics often did not follow the form of the body in the Japanese style; however, the vibrant checkers of the dress in this painting curve to outline Marthe's arms and posture.

Description

This painting depicts Pierre Bonnard’s wife, Marthe de Méligny, standing before a curtain holding a cup and saucer. She was a recurring subject in his art from when they met in 1893 until her death in 1942. Here, the pattern of her dress merges so thoroughly with the curtain that she seems weightless—an ethereal presence floating in a field of pink, lavender, gold, green, and blue. Although a founding member of the Nabis (“Prophets”), Bonnard was attracted to the poetry of everyday life rather than obscure mystical subjects. He typically painted from memory and imagination,allowing experiences to distill into scenes filled with a personal emotional resonance.
  • 1928
    (Galerie L'Art Moderne, Lucerne, Switzerland, sold to Galerie Berheim-Jeune, Paris, France)
    1928–1930
    (Galerie Berheim-Jeune, Paris, France, sold to Edith Halpert)
    1930
    (Edith Halpert [1900-1970], Downtown Gallery, New York, NY, September 21, 1930, sold to Abigail Greene Aldrich (Mrs. John D.) Rockefeller, Jr.
    1930–1937
    Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. [1874–1948], New York, NY, given to her son, Laurence S. Rockefeller
    1937–1999
    Laurence S. Rockefeller [1910–2004], New York, NY, given to New York Fine Art Support Trust
    1999
    (Sotheby's, New York, NY Fine Arts Support Trust sale, November 11, 1999, lot 131, (bought in))
    after November 11, 1999–before June 2000
    (Sotheby's New York, NY, sold to Richard Feigen & Co., NY)
    2000
    (Richard Feigen & Co. New York, NY, June 2000, sold to Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley)
    2020
    Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley, Cleveland, OH, promised gift to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    Provenance Footnotes
    1 According to the 1999 Sotheby's, New York, sale catalogue. Galerie l'Art Moderne was a branch of the Galerie Bernheim-Jeune.
    2 According to Jean Dauberville and Henry Dauberville. Bonnard: Catalogue Raisonné De L'œuvre Peint (Paris, 1966), vol. III, p. 290, cat. no. 1357.
    3 Edith Halpert established the Downtown Gallery in 1926 (initially called Our Gallery until 1927), dedicated exclusively to contemporary American art by living artists. This painting was included in a list of artworks sold by the Downtown Gallery to Mrs. John D. Rockefeller. See: Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution Washington, D.C.; Downtown Gallery records, 1824-1974, bulk 1926-1969; Series 4: Business Records; Reel 5635, Frames 6-101: Clients, Individuals, vol. 13: R, 1927-1975; Frame 37.
    4 According to the 1999 Sotheby's, New York, sale catalogue.
    5 According to documentation supplied by Richard Feigen and Co., New York, in the curatorial file.
  • Exposition Bonnard: œuvres récentes du mercredi 24 Novembre au vendredi 17 Decembre 1926. Paris: MM. Bernheim-Jeune, 1926. Mentioned: no. 4
    Cassou, Jean. "Le Lyrisme de Bonnard." Formes, no. 9 (1930): 4-5. Reproduced: fig. 8
    Barr, Alfred H. Modern Works of Art. New York, NY: The Museum of Modern Art, 1934. Mentioned: P. 26, no. 42
    Wheeler, Monroe. 20th Century Portraits. New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1942. Reproduced: P. 44; Mentioned: P. 134
    "La vie française" an exhibition of paintings chiefly by Pierre Bonnard and Édouard Vuillard, Oct. 6-Nov. 11, 1944. Institute of Modern Art (Boston, Mass.). 1944. Mentioned: P. 1, no. 7
    Rewald, John. Bonnard.New York, NY: Published by A. Carman for the Museum of Modern Art, 1948. Reproduced: P. 111, no. 57; mentioned: P. 140, no. 157
    Wildenstein and Company (New York, N.Y.). A Special Exhibition of Paintings by American and French Modern Masters: For the Benefit of the La Napoule Art Foundation ... May 4th Through May 28th, 1955. New York: Wildenstein, 1955. Mentioned: French Artists no. 2
    Dauberville, Jean, and Henry Dauberville. Bonnard, catalogue raisonné de l'œuvre peint. Paris, France: J. et H. Bernheim, 1966. Mentioned and reproduced: Vol. III, p. 290, no. 1357
  • Impressionism to Modernism: The Keithley Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 11, 2022-January 8, 2023).
    Modern Works of Art - Fifth Anniversary Exhibition. Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY (November 20,1934-January 20,1935).
    Pierre Bonnard, Memorial Exhibition. Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland,OH (1948); Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY (May 10-September 6,1948).
    French and American Art. Wildenstein & Co., New York, NY (1955).
    The Artist's Family. Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY (1952).
    Pierre Bonnard and Edouard Vuillard. Institute of Modern Art, Boston, MA (1944).
    20th Century Portraits. Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY (1942-1943).
    Summer Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture. Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY (1933).
    Bonnard Oeuvres recents. Galerie Bernheim-Jeune, Paris, France (1926).
  • {{cite web|title=The Plaid Dress|url=false|author=Pierre Bonnard|year=1926|access-date=21 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/8.2020