Femme assise (Seated Woman) - Bilbao Fine Arts Museum

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Femme assise (Seated Woman)

Blanchard, María

Santander, 06/03/1881-Paris, 05/04/1932

Oil on canvas

100.5 x 73.5 cm

c. 1928

Second quarter of the 20th century

82/226

Acquired in 1966

María Blanchard's lifetime unfolded in a complex era for her as both an artist and a woman, forcing her to make major sacrifices in order to become a fully-fledged member of the group of creators that consolidated the avant-garde in the early years of the 20th century.

After her early years of training in Santander and Madrid, when her works still lack personality, she moved to Paris in 1909, and after a hesitant, doubtful period when faced with the newly-minted trends, she passionately threw herself into Cubism, which gave her much-desired and sought-after freedom. She reached her artistic peak with an individual diction, creating austere, exceedingly beautiful works, especially in her poetic use of colour. In the 1920s, she evolved towards new forms which were indebted to her stint in this artistic movement, just as with so many artists of her day.

Her incursion into what was known as the retour à l'ordre is nothing other than a personal outlet for her need to evolve. The depiction of the object leads to a figurative work in which the geometric structure of Cubism still lies under the surface, whose volumetric composition and arrangement of light resemble the works of Cézanne.

And she dives into this new stage with an expressive quality all her own, using the human figure as the outpouring of her own internal experiences, which confers a unique personality on her works.

Femme Assise (Seated Woman) is from a very special period in her life, which pervades her entire oeuvre. After the death of her close friend Juan Gris and her Belgiandealer, among other events, she fell into a funk which led her to a sort of mysticism. This turning point resulted in a more sensitive, melancholy and poetic iconography in which a profound sense of her life experience underlies the technique, colour and drawing.

The image of the seamstress, who is holding the cloth she is sewing in her hands, next to whom is a basket on the nearby table, emerges in other compositions as well, as she was a young woman from her closest circle.

She places this figure in a compressed setting, in which simple shapes sketch the image which she imbues with the sadness and dejection of her depressed mood. It is like a mirror of her existence, an intimate testimony of a life which is getting away from her, so she wants to grasp onto it. She concealed this work from her merchants and kept it until her dying days, as attested to by a photograph of her studio at the time of her death. (María José Salazar)

Selected bibliography

  • Castillo, Alberto del. "El Museo de Arte Contemporáneo en el de Bellas Artes de Bilbao", Goya : revista de arte, n° 101. 1971. pp. 327, 330.
  • Bengoechea, Javier de. Museo de Bellas Artes, Bilbao. Bilbao, La Gran Enciclopedia Vasca, 1978. pp. 416-417.
  • Bengoechea, Javier de. Catálogo de arte moderno y contemporáneo del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao. Bilbao, Banco de Vizcaya, 1980. p. 36. (Con el título Mujer sentada).
  • Campoy, Antonio Manuel. María Blanchard. Madrid, Gavar, 1981. p. 190.
  • 50 ans d'art espagnol, 1880-1936 [Cat. exp.]. Bordeaux, Galerie des Beaux-Arts, 1984. p. 83, n° cat. 16.
  • Caffin Madaule, Liliane. Catalogue raisonné des oeuvres de Maria Blanchard.... Londres, Editions Liliane Caffin Madaule, 1992. pp. 37, 120, 289-290.
  • Siete pintores españoles de la Escuela de París [Cat. exp.]. Madrid, Atenea ; Caja de Madrid, 1993. pp. 84-85.
  • Zugaza, Miguel ... [et al.]. Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : maestros antiguos y modernos. Bilbao, Fundación Bilbao Bizkaia Kutxa = Bilbao Bizkaia Kutxa Fundazioa, 1999. p. 207.
  • De Picasso a Bacon : arte contemporáneo en las colecciones del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao [Cat. exp.]. Segovia, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Esteban Vicente, 1999. pp. 72-73.
  • Cat. María Blanchard. Madrid, Deutsche Bank, 2000.
  • Zugaza, Miguel ... [et al.]. Maestros antiguos y modernos en las colecciones del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao. Bilbao, Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2001. p. 127.
  • Salazar, Maria José. María Blanchard : catálogo razonado : pintura, 1889-1932 = catalogue raisonné. Madrid, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, 2004.
  • Ibiza i Osca, Vicent. Obra de mujeres artistas en los museos españoles : guía de pintoras y escultoras, 1500-1936. Alzira (Valencia), Centro Francisco Tomás y Valiente, UNED, 2006. p. 140.
  • Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. p. 159.
  • Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. p. 159.
  • Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. p. 159.
  • Bernárdez Sanchís, Carmen. Maria Blanchard. Madrid, Fundación Mapfre, 2009. p. 120.
  • Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2011. p. 165, n° cat. 116.
  • Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa : gida. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2012. p. 165, n° cat. 116.
  • 100 años en femenino : una historia de las mujeres en España [Cat. exp.]. Madrid, Acción Cultural Española, 2012. pp. 28, 241, sin n° cat.
  • Maria Blanchard [Cat. exp.]. Madrid ; Santader, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía ; Fundación Botín, 2012. pp. 74-75.
  • Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. p. 165.
  • Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. p. 165.
  • 110 Years 110 Works [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 242-243, sin n° cat.
  • 110 Años 110 Obras [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 242-243, sin n° cat.
  • 110 Ans 110 Oeuvres [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 242-243, sin n° cat.
  • 110 Urte 110 Artelan [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 242-243, sin n° cat.