Henri Rousseau

French, 1844-1910

Flowers in a Vase, 1909

oil on canvas

support: 17 7/8 x 12 7/8 inches (45.4 x 32.7 cm); framed: 26 1/2 x 21 5/8 x 3 3/4 inches (67.31 x 54.93 x 9.53 cm)

Collection Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York

Room of Contemporary Art Fund, 1939

RCA1939:17

More Details

Inscriptions

signature, dated / lower left / Henri Rousseau / 1909

Provenance

collection Count Sandor, 1911 [possibly purchased from a small exhibition in Paris];
to his niece, Countess Sandor;
sold to Arthur Tooth and Sons, London, 1939;
sold to M. Knoedler and Company, 1939;
sold to the Albright Art Gallery, December 12, 1939

Class

Paintings

Work Type

Oil painting

This information may change due to ongoing research. Glossary of Terms

For Henri Rousseau, the theme of the still life, especially flowers, offered a pleasant diversion from more ambitious, academic subjects. The strict front-facing view of his flower paintings and his employment of clear, solid-colored forms and restricted, flattened space are all characteristic of folk or "primitive" art. The flowers in this painting have been carefully rendered. All of the floral varieties in the bouquet are recognizable: peonies, tulips, daisies, mimosas, acacias, and forget-me-nots. The surface is smoothly and evenly brushed, but it is sometimes interrupted to allow the white preparatory ground to show through as an element of texture.

Label from For the Love of Things: Still Life, February 27–May 29, 2016