1861 -1932 · Paris, Montmartre and birth of partitionism

Powerful contours, flat colored areas and Parisian nights make Louis Anquetin a pioneer of partitionism before his spectacular return to the old masters.

Louis Anquetin was born in Étrépagny in 1861. Arriving in Paris, he first studied with Léon Bonnat then joined Fernand Cormon's workshop, where he met Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Émile Bernard and Vincent van Gogh. After impressionist and divisionist essays, Anquetin sought a more synthetic image with Bernard. Around 1887, they developed partitionism: simplified shapes, large dark contours and flat areas of color inspired by stained glass, Japanese prints and popular arts. Avenue de Clichy, five o'clock in the evening transposed the modern street into a network of silhouettes and artificial lights. Woman with an umbrella and Au Moulin Rouge condense elegance, movement and the nightlife of Montmartre, while the Self-Portrait with a Pipe asserts a frontal and constructed presence. Anquetin exhibited with the avant-gardes and directly influenced his companions, but moved away from this invention in the 1890s. Fascinated by Rubens, Rembrandt and ancient techniques, he copied, studied oil painting and developed a more modeled, often monumental art. Died in Paris in 1932, he left a double body of work: decisive for the birth of synthetism and stubbornly turned, in his maturity, towards the tradition of the masters. The "Louis Anquetin" selection notably compares Avenue de Clichy, five o'clock in the evening and Self-portrait with a pipe. His reading prioritize the story.

Anquetin encloses color to release the image: the outline transforms Paris into a sign, light and movement.