The Window

This painting was made at Le Cannet in the Alpes-Maritimes, in an apartment at the Villa Hirondelle where Bonnard stayed before purchasing the nearby Villa du Bosquet in 1925. Beyond the open window stretch the red-tiled roofs of the small town. On the table lies a copy of Marie by Peter Nansen, a novel Bonnard had illustrated when it was published by La Revue Blanche in 1898. His wife Marthe appears on the balcony, quietly integrated into the intimate domestic setting.

In these years Bonnard increasingly painted from memory, returning to a motif long after first seeing it. That distance gave him freedom to adjust color, shift perspective, and let the mood of a scene guide the composition. At Le Cannet he found the calm and light that suited this way of working. The Mediterranean sun brightened his palette, while the familiar presence of Marthe and the routines of domestic life offered subjects he could revisit again and again.

P.S. Here are 10 paintings that will bring sunshine to your house. We hope you have a calm and quiet Saturday!