Artist Info
Henri Rousseau
Henri Rousseau occupies a unique space in the French Post-Impressionist aesthetic that his works conveyed in the primitive or naïve style. Born into the family of a plumber in 1844 in Laval, Rousseau was an ordinary student but tended to have more luck with artistic subjects and competitions than mainstream school subjects, but did not follow art as a career decision for several decades after finishing his general schooling. Instead, Rousseau worked for a law office and gained a government position which eventually allowed him to be promoted to the position of tax collector. His first wife died, leaving two surviving children of nine. He later remarried and when he was 49 years old, he finally retired to work on his art full time.
Ridiculed by much of the art world, Henri Rousseau oil paintings were imaginative depictions of jungle scenes that he claimed were remnants from his memories of Mexico as a part of the French armed services. However, these stories were simply untrue and it became common knowledge that Rousseau had never been to Mexico, nor even served in the French military. Because he had no formal training in art, the oil paintings of Henri Rousseau display a primitive style which is often inherent to the untrained artist, however, critics have found redeeming aspects in the paintings of Henri Rousseau which give him more credit as an artist than he may have received during his own lifetime.
Henri Rousseau artwork was created in an untraditional, albeit creative, manner of painting. His technique was an invention in itself as Rousseau painted with one color at a time and started at the furthest layer of the background which was usually the sky and worked his way forward, color by color, to the objects in the foreground. Some critics also criticized his freedom in portraying botanical subjects in his jungle prints because none of the plants appeared to be actual representations of real plants, simply concoctions of Rousseau’s creativity. It is through these types of quirks that one can begin to see the strangeness with which Henri Rousseau paintings must have been viewed. He continued to have great faith in his artistic abilities and longed for mainstream acceptance of his work, but never seemed to notice the criticisms made of the works themselves or his thoughts and philosophies as an artist.
One talent of Henri Rousseau was that he could effectively work in very large scale paintings which he practiced several times. He also practiced his technique of painting very well, although due to some of his painting techniques, the surfaces of some works have begun to crack resulting from the qualities of the drying of oil paint. However, this is not an uncommon occurrence in oil paintings but the amount of cracking in Rousseau’s works is probably a direct result of his self-taught career in painting. During his lifetime, the paintings of Henri Rousseau were displayed at the Salon des Independants among the works of other notable artists of the period such as Matisse.
ARTicle from the archives
Art Decorating Tips
The right choice of art can add a lot to a home, but where to begin? The following are some tips and suggestions for choosing the right art for your space, be it home or office.
-Blank white walls cry out to be decorated. Hang something you like, perhaps inspirational, thought provoking, or nostalgic (we get a lot of requests for art that hung on customers’ walls when they were children), and remember that the choice of art will have a big impact on the feeling of the room.
-Landscapes or outdoor scenes can make a smaller room seem more airy and open.
-Sport scenes, humorous art or old posters – such as Toulouse-Lautrecs Moulin Rouge – can give a room a more playful, relaxed feel
-Portraits – either reproductions of Old Masters (such as Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring) or portraits of your own family members – can both personalize a room as well as giving it a certain dignity.
-Colors are important. Loud, vibrant colors can inspire and energize; more neutral or pastel colors can give a room a more calming, relaxed feel.
-Larger paintings can serve as excellent focus points for a room. Whether to choose the playfulness of a Botero or the wild natural feel of a William Beard is down to the room…and you.
-Traditional rooms are best complimented with more traditional art, with the opposite also being true
-Themes for a room are worth sticking with. Sports themes for a sports room, or animal/jungle scenes (such as Rousseau’s) for a room overlooking the garden, perhaps.
-Grouping paintings by theme in a room also works well
-Be creative with framing options. Hanging two or three paintings as a set can look really good, and remember that some paintings can actually be broken into several pieces…so instead of one 48 by 72 inch painting you could have two 24 by 36 inch paintings, each showing a “half” and being mounted separately but hung close together. This can give a really nice feel.
-Ocean’s Bridge can create paintings from your photos or even sketches…our artists are at your disposal, so be as brave and creative as you want!
Upcoming Exhibitions
Selected upcoming exhibitions at art museums – San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, USA
Half-Life of a Dream: Contemporary Chinese Art from the Logan Collection
Thursday, July 10, 2008 - Sunday, October 05, 2008
New Work: Zilvinas Kempinas, Alyson Shotz, Mary Temple
Saturday, August 02, 2008 - Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Double Down: Two Visions of Vegas
Thursday, September 18, 2008 - Sunday, January 04, 2009
Brought to Light: Photography and the Invisible
Saturday, October 11, 2008 - Sunday, January 04, 2009
