La Musique

Albert André
La Musique
vers 1900
huile sur toile
H. 63,5 ; L. 99,5 cm.
Don Jacqueline George-Besson, 1991
© Adagp, Paris, 2024 © Musée d’Orsay, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Patrice Schmidt
Albert André (1869 - 1954)

The critic Claude Roger-Marx successfully defined the charm of this painting by pointing out that "the communion established between the figures and the décor, an atmosphere of good grace and contented bourgeoisie, the warmth here and there shedding a golden light on the faces, the hangings, the carpets, the frames, all have an attraction that compares to the best paintings by Vuillard". Albert André was, moreover, a friend of Vuillard and an enthusiast of the Nabi aesthetic. In this respect, one can see here, in addition to the subject, the Nabi style of layout, particularly with the figures abruptly cut off in the foreground, a technique borrowed from Japanese prints. However, the freedom of brushwork also owes much to the influence of Impressionism.
The scene depicted is not precisely documented, but it certainly evokes the cultivated bourgeois circles of the turn of the century, whose aspirations were shaped by publications like La Revue Blanche.

Artwork not currently exhibited in the museum
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