On Sort ! Les Loisirs Avec Bonnard Et Son Époque Leisure And Entertainment With Bonnard And His Contemporaries

Exhibition at the Musée Bonnard, Le Cannet, 1 July - 5 November 2023

From the middle of the 19th century, the new organisation of working hours contributed to the advent of leisure activities. Paris and the surrounding region were at the forefront of this change in France and Europe. Balls, popular festivals and social evenings multiplied. The Parisienne became an inseparable part of the capital's landscape. Salons were places where artists and musicians worked and enjoyed themselves, as well as places for promotion and distribution. The circus also became a spectacle in its own right, a subject that painters seized upon.

This phenomenon was the high point of Impressionism, but it was the artists of the next generation, belonging to this "Belle Époque" (1890-1914), who saw a real turning point in the expression of modernity in painting. Canoeing, skating, horse racing, circuses, cabarets, theatres and music halls were all subjects painted by numerous artists.

This exhibition catalogue brings together artists famous for their attraction to the world of nocturnal leisure, including Dufy, Toulouse Lautrec, Anquetin, Ibels and Georges Seurat. The major works on display reflect the festive atmosphere of famous night spots. Essays by art historians define the perimeters of this leisure culture in the Belle Époque.