Pont-Aven School

Pont-Aven has lent its name to one of the most famous schools of painting in modern art and is now automatically associated with Paul Gauguin and Emile Bernard. In 1888, in this Breton village in southern Finistère, the two painters set about inventing the features of a completely new style of painting: Synthetism. Breaking with academic orthodoxy and heavily influenced by Japanese prints, they introduced novel aesthetic principles distinguished especially by a belief in simple forms and the use of colour applied in large patches edged by a dark line. This approach further distanced itself from the art that preceded it in its taste for matt tones and the rejection of traditional perspective.

This new book reveals to a wider public the important collection that Alexandre Mouradian amassed in only a few years. The collection reflects its creator's great passion for the artists of the Pont-Aven group, as well as others in Brittany and beyond who embraced the new ideas of Bernard and Gauguin without ever losing their individuality. Whether in painting or printmaking, each of these was able to move beyond the imitation of observed reality to express the deepest aspect of his personality: his emotions. The works selected by the collector eloquently show the international reach of what was not strictly speaking a school, in the full sense of the term. Since the private Paris academies were closed during the summer, artists from all over Europe went to Pont-Aven and Le Pouldu to seek inspiration and 'to dare' like Gauguin.

28 colour images

About the Authors

Estelle Guille des Buttes obtained her diploma from the Institut National du Patrimoine in Paris and is Chief Curator of Pont-Aven Museum. Estelle Guille des Buttes is also the author of numerous articles and other publications on the Pont-Aven school.

Adrien Goetz is a member of the Institute (Academy of Fine Arts), a former student of the ecole Normale Superieure, and holds an agregation in History and a PhD in the History of Art.

Jean-Marie Rouart has also pursued a parallel career in journalism, firstly at Magazine litteraire, then at Le Figaro and Quotidien de Paris, where he edited the literary section. Following his period as editor of Figaro litteraire, from 1986 to 2003, he started writing for Paris Match.