Beadleston Gallery
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Impressionist and 20th Century Fans
- Additional Information -
Opening Reception: November 17, 1999, 6-8 p.m.
New York, NY - Impressionist and 20th Century Fans, an exhibition of paintings, watercolors and gouaches on canvas, silk, and paper celebrating the use of the fan as an art form at the turn of the century, will be shown at the Beadleston Gallery from November 18 through December 18, 1999. More than 25 fans will be included in the exhibition by such noted artists as Camille Pissarro, Edgar Degas, Pierre Bonnard, Maurice Denis, Jean-Louis Forain, Paul Gauguin, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.
The Beadleston Gallery seeks to bring a dream of Edgar Degas' to light. One hundred twenty years ago, at the fourth Impressionist exhibition in Paris (April-May 1879) Degas wished to include a room devoted entirely to fans painted by himself, Pissarro, Berthe Morisot, Forain, Félix and Marie Braquemond. To Degas’ chagrin, the room never evolved, but 21 fans by him, Pissarro and Forain were exhibited initiating what the critic Arthur Baignières described as "une epidémie d'éventails' (‘a fan epidemic.)
Several reasons inspired the painters to explore the fan shape. Most influential were three exhibitions organized in Paris by the Japanese Government between 1867 and 1878. This exposure to the East created a fascination in Europeans for anything Japanese. Fans were exported from Japan by the millions, making them very fashionable and easily obtainable. This commercial aspect motivated some of the artists, such as Maurice Denis, to paint directly onto Japanese paper fans and for the dealer, Durand-Ruel, to request Pissarro to paint fans "since times are hard and for the moment, they’re the only things that can find takers."
There were aesthetic reasons as well for the artists to paint on fans. The challenge of painting in a semi-circular fan shape was appealing to the artists. The fan format creates the effect of distance receding space or panoramic view. Compositionally the artist was forced to anchor his work by emphasizing the sides and allowing the curvature of the fan to exert its pull on the horizon line. Many of the works were never folded for use, but signed, framed and hung as works of fine art.
Among the works included in Impressionist and 20th Century Fans, will be a Pissarro entitled Les Moissonneurs painted in 1880 showing peasants harvesting the autumn crop; a gouache on silk by Henri-Charles Guérard of the artist's dog, Azor; a fanciful Henri de Toulouse Lautrec Pêche à la ligne watercolor from 1899; a Jean Beraud oil entitled Allegory of Rain; and a Henri-Joseph Harpignies watercolor of a landscape from 1916.
Established in 1971, Beadleston Gallery has long specialized in works by Impressionist and 20th Century masters. Recently, the Gallery has expanded its range to include such noted contemporary American artists as Wolf Kahn and Russian born painter, Victor Koulbak.
The Beadleston Gallery is a member of the Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA), a non-profit organization of the nation's leading art galleries.
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