Color and light: the Neo-impressionist Henri-Edmond Cross

Abstract

Inspired by the work of Realist painters such as Gustave Courbet and Francois Bonvin, Henri-Edmond Cross's earliest paintings were compositions in dark, somber colors. Following his involvement with the avant-gardist circle around Georges Seurat, he gradually adopted the Neo-Impressionist technique and began to develop a unique visual vocabulary. After his move to the Mediterranean coast in 1891, Cross's palette became increasingly lighter, resulting in dazzlingly colorful landscapes, genre paintings, and compositions that are overlaid with mythological and allegorical allusions. This volume traces Cross's artistic trajectory through all stages of his prolific career and situates his masterful approach to color and light within the broader context of the European avant-garde of his time. In addition, it examines the painter's anarchist sympathies and the political dimensions of his depictions of utopian sceneries.

Contents

Foreword -- Henri-Edmond Cross and Germany / Marina Ferretti Bocquillon -- "To paint happiness"? : Henri-Edmond Cross's landscapes / Daniel Zamani -- Henri-Edmond Cross : anarchism, ambiguity, and Nietzsche / Richard Thomson -- Henri-Edmond Cross and Belgium / Monique Nonne -- Henri-Edmond Cross : an unrecognized Néo draftsman / Annette Haudiquet -- Catalog of exhibited works. From the academy to the pictorial avant-garde : Henri-Edmond Cross's early works / Valérie Reis ; Henri-Edmond Cross, Neo-Impressionist painter / Marina Ferretti Bocquillon ; A pioneer of modern painting : Henri-Edmond Cross's late works / Daniel Zamani ; Henri-Edmond Cross's works on paper : "become who you are" / Marina Ferretti Bocquillon ; Appendix. "The most beautiful region in the world" : Henri-Edmond Cross and Le Lavandou / Raphaël Dupouy ; Chronology / Valérie Reis.