Édouard Vuillard painted his mother more than 500 times throughout his career.
Striving to establish himself among the French avant-garde, Vuillard lived and worked in modest apartments shared with his mother and other members of their family in Paris. He lovingly portrayed Madame Vuillard as carer, housewife and businesswoman, running a dress-making business from her dining room. Small wonder Vuillard is quoted as having said: ‘Ma Maman, c’est ma muse’. Marking the 150th anniversary of the artist’s birth in 1868, this exhibition – the first ever to explore this subject – centres on the first decade of Vuillard’s career, when his small-scale, highly appealing work, with its domestic subject matter, prompted one critic to dub him an ‘intimist’. It features immensely attractive paintings, pastels, prints and photographs lent by collections in Britain and Europe, including the National Galleries of Scotland, Tate, the British Museum, Archives Vuillard, Musée d’Orsay and Musée National Picasso, Paris.
Header Image: Édouard Vuillard, ‘Deux ouvrières dans l’atelier de couture [Two Seamstresses in the Workroom]’, 1893 © National Galleries of Scotland
Here’s what some of our visitors have said about the exhibition so far…
‘ Exposition belle’. T.A, France. 07/12/2018
‘ Worth the journey. Lots to think about here and to remember’. B.H, London. 06/12/2018
‘Very thoughtfully put together. Thank you’. M.K, Solihull. 01/12/2018
‘Wonderful exhibition’. N., New York. 26/11/2018
‘A great treat’. T.D, Birmingham. 24/11/2018
‘Beautifully curated exhibition. The Barber never fails to impress’. E.P, London. 10/11/18
‘Stunning exhibition. Excellent notes!’. J.B, London. 2/11/18
‘It was an inspiring exhibition that will be remembered’ G.D, Wolverhampton. 31/10/18
‘Glad I came in to see this exhibition’. K.F, Worcester. 29/10/18
‘A very moving selection of works’. L.I.W, Hampshire. 23/10/18