1919 (ca.), Pierre Bonnard, The Bowl of Milk -- Tate Modern (London)
From the Tate museum label: Bonnard painted this work in the south of France. He moved there during the First World War with his partner Marthe de Méligny, pictured here. This view is of the room they rented. Light reflected from the sea pours through the balcony window. The strong light leaves many details in shadow, including de Méligny's face and the cat awaiting its milk. Preparatory drawings show Bonnard testing a variety of details and poses before he brought them together in the final painting.
From the Phillips exhibition label: This atmospheric painting shows the room in a hotel overlooking the sea in Antibes, where Pierre and Marthe stayed in the months after the end of the First World War. Scholars have not been able to determine whether the model is Marthe or another woman. It is also not clear what time of day is represented. Is the shadow cast over the tabletop by sunlight, moonlight, or is it entirely imagined? Out of the light and shadow appears a woman at right. Her hair, face, and hand, as well as the edge of her pink dress, are brightly lit in contrast to the rest of her body. The black cat that emerges from the luminous darkness beneath the table might be a playful embodiment of the very idea of shadow.
1919 (ca.), Pierre Bonnard, The Bowl of Milk -- Tate Modern (London)
From the Tate museum label: Bonnard painted this work in the south of France. He moved there during the First World War with his partner Marthe de Méligny, pictured here. This view is of the room they rented. Light reflected from the sea pours through the balcony window. The strong light leaves many details in shadow, including de Méligny's face and the cat awaiting its milk. Preparatory drawings show Bonnard testing a variety of details and poses before he brought them together in the final painting.
From the Phillips exhibition label: This atmospheric painting shows the room in a hotel overlooking the sea in Antibes, where Pierre and Marthe stayed in the months after the end of the First World War. Scholars have not been able to determine whether the model is Marthe or another woman. It is also not clear what time of day is represented. Is the shadow cast over the tabletop by sunlight, moonlight, or is it entirely imagined? Out of the light and shadow appears a woman at right. Her hair, face, and hand, as well as the edge of her pink dress, are brightly lit in contrast to the rest of her body. The black cat that emerges from the luminous darkness beneath the table might be a playful embodiment of the very idea of shadow.