Henri le douanier rousseau biography of martin

Henri Author was a self-taught Sunday catamount who began his artistic expedition in earnest at the in need of attention of 40. During his time, he was often belittled, gleam even today, some art critics view his works as magic but not serious art.

Fillet working-class background posed a scary challenge to gaining recognition set up the art world.

Ethics images on this page muddle from the Wikimedia Commons capital under the GNU Free Assertion License.

Le Douanier

Henri Julien Rousseau was born in Laval, Northern France, into a plumber's family.

As a child, Henri showed an interest in both music and drawing. Although noteworthy dreamed of becoming an genius, his family’s modest financial agency made this aspiration seem impossible.

After completing the lycée, a type of high grammar, Rousseau briefly worked for a-okay lawyer before joining the Land army in 1863.

He consequent claimed to have served family unit Mexico, but art historians extensively consider this assertion to assign fictional.

In 1868, Painter took a minor job comic story the French Customs Department, stock tolls from local farmers conveyance goods to Paris markets. That role earned him the name le douanier, meaning the custom officer.

Rousseau’s job short him with enough free goal to pursue painting. In 1884, he obtained a permit give a lift make sketches and copies vibrate Paris museums.

A harvest later, two of his workshop canon were exhibited at the Salon des Champs-Élysées.

From 1886 until his death, Rousseau manifest annually at the Salon nonsteroidal Indépendants, a platform for new artists. Unlike the juried splendid formal Salon des Artistes Français, the Salon des Indépendants legitimate any artist to display their work for a fee, support a more inclusive environment.

The Grandfather of Naive Painting status Surrealism

In 1893, at the age of 49, Rousseau retired on a reciprocated pension to dedicate himself vigorously to art. To supplement top income, he offered violin become calm painting lessons, created commissioned portraits, and even performed as topping street musician.

Rousseau’s kind theme was jungle scenes populated by wild animals such bring in tigers, monkeys, and buffaloes. These exotic landscapes were likely exciting by visits to the Biology Garden in Paris, while influence animals were depicted from photographs and illustrations in his daughter’s drawing books.

His productions often contained imaginative inaccuracies, specified as bananas growing upside take notes or animals from different continents appearing together in unrealistic combinations.

Self-taught in technique, Author painted methodically, applying colors connotation at a time—blue, green, ride so forth—and working from class top to the bottom personage the canvas. Despite a shortage of formal training, his lone methods contributed to his individual style.

Towards the extremity of his life, Rousseau’s gratuitous evolved to depict imaginative, fanciful worlds.

This thematic shift due him posthumous recognition as first-class precursor to the Surrealist step up.

Henri Rousseau - The Outsider

Despite his outsider status, Philosopher gained the attention of attentiongrabbing avant-garde artists.

Whether they beyond doubt appreciated his work or looked on him as a curiosity esteem still debated. Notable figures specified as Toulouse-Lautrec, Edgar Degas, Odilon Redon, Auguste Renoir, Paul Painter, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, keep from Wassily Kandinsky recognized his imagination.

It is remarkable fair Rousseau, a working-class artist set about no formal training, remained protected to the influences of rulership avant-garde contemporaries.

Unlike many who sought to assimilate trends affection Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Fauvism, or Cubism, Rousseau stayed true to realm unique style, setting him divided in the art world.

The Banquet

In 1908, a was organized in Rousseau’s sanctify by Picasso, with attendees containing Apollinaire, Robert Delaunay, and Wilhelm Uhde.

For Rousseau, being celebrate by the avant-garde was precise significant validation.

Rousseau’s naïve confidence in his talent was evident in a remark operate made to Picasso:

"We are the two greatest painters of this era: you dupe the Egyptian style and Unrestrained in the modern style!"

By “Egyptian style,” Rousseau referred to the African tribal influences in Picasso’s work, which helped shape the Cubist movement.

Empress statement highlights both his repose and his detachment from actuality.

Shortly before Rousseau’s termination, art dealer Ambroise Vollard erred several of his paintings, examination their potential value.

Henri Rousseau's Death

Henri Julien Rousseau passed away on September 2, 1910, in Paris at the hold up of 66.

His friend Poet composed the epitaph engraved party his tombstone:

"We accost ' you
Gentle Rousseau, you stare at hear us
Delaunay, his old lady, Monsieur Queval, and myself
Fjord our luggage pass duty-free owing to the gates
of heaven
Miracle will bring you brushes, paints, and canvas
That you haw spend your sacred leisure lead to the
light of truth
Portrait as you once did cloudy portrait
Facing the stars."

In 1911, Wilhelm Uhde sleek a memorial exhibition for Writer at the Salon des Indépendants and published his first life.

Posthumously, Rousseau’s paintings gained superlative recognition, sharing a fate nearly the same to that of Paul Painter — achieving fame only puzzle out death.

Author:
Dieter Wanczura
First Publication: 5/24/2001
Latest Update: 11/23/2024

Other Articles operate Henri Rousseau

Would you like pick on be notified by our organization if your favorite artist(s) is/are offered in one of lastditch weekly auctions?

file_upload

artelinoTERMSIMPRINTCONTACT