The Nabis’ gallery
The Nabis showed their work alongside that of other groups of artists at the successive exhibitions Le Barc organised under the collective name Impressionnistes et symbolistes. They exhibited a mix of paintings, drawings and prints, indicating that they placed the same value on the different media.
The 1893 exhibition catalogue featured a lithograph of each artist, together with a handwritten summary of the exhibited works. Each entry was thus a decorative composition, in which the artists could present themselves in an original way.
Bernard–Van Gogh exhibition
In April 1892, Le Barc allowed Emile Bernard to use his gallery free of charge for a retrospective of the work of Vincent van Gogh.
Bernard single-handedly designed and printed a catalogue for the exhibition, which paid tribute to his deceased friend. He combined the list of works with woodcuts he had made previously; the coarse treatment in the rough wood and the casual finish reflect his quest for a primitive art.
Maurice Denis, Exhibition List (Titre de l'exposition), 1893
Emile Bernard, Exhibition catalogue for the Van Gogh exhibition at gallery Le Barc de Boutteville (1892) with Lady with a Muff (La dame au manchon), 1892
Further reading
- Frantz Jourdain, Né en 76, Paris, 1951
- Mary Ann Stevens, Emile Bernard 1868-1941. A Pioneer of Modern Art, Zwolle, 1990
- Pierre Sanchez, Les expositions de la galerie Le Barc de Boutteville (1891-1899) et du Salon des Cent (1894-1903). Répertoire des artistes et liste de leurs œuvres, Dijon, 2012