Woman Putting on Her Stockings by Pierre Bonnard - 1893 - 35.2 x 27 cm Cleveland Museum of Art Woman Putting on Her Stockings by Pierre Bonnard - 1893 - 35.2 x 27 cm Cleveland Museum of Art

Woman Putting on Her Stockings

oil on board • 35.2 x 27 cm
  • Pierre Bonnard - October 3, 1867 - January 23, 1947 Pierre Bonnard 1893

The woman in this painting is likely Bonnard’s wife, Marthe de Méligny, who is putting on black stockings as her toffee-colored hair frame her face in several of the artist’s works.

Known for his bold use of color, Bonnard sets his model against a rich gold background, her figure defined with hints of green and blue that separate her limbs from the sea of fabric. A sense of movement is created through the waves of tousled hair and organic form of the serpent-like stocking waiting to be put on.

We present today's painting thanks to the Cleveland Museum of Art. If you would like to learn more about Bonnard and the Nabis, please check our Post-Impressionism 101 course here.  :)