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Louis Anquetin
(1861-1932)
By Wendy Owen
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Born in Etrepagny,
France, Anquetin moved to Paris at the age of 21 and
studied at the studio of Léon Bonnat. There, he became
friends with Toulouse-Lautrec. Together, Anquetin and
Toulouse-Lautrec would search for a new, more modern
style of painting beyond Impressionism. They formed a
group which included Vincent Van Gogh and Emile Bernard
and would often use each other as models for their work.
Because Anquetin worked so closely alongside
Toulouse-Lautrec and others, their works would often
influence each other. |
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At The Moulin Rouge, 1893
Toulouse-Lautrec’s At the Moulin
Rouge, 1895
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The bold black lines
and even bolder color palates of Anquetin were often
matched later by his contemporaries. |
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Avenue de Clichy, Five O'clock, 1887
Café Terrace by Vincent Van Gogh, 1888
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This style of painting
that Anquetin spearheaded was dubbed “cloisonnism” by
art critic Edouard Dujardin, and was inspired by stained
glass art as well as Japanese ukiyo-e. |
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The Winds of the Seine, 1989
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Strangely, though most
art aficionados recognize the work of his
contemporaries, Anquetin is still relatively
lesser-known today. This is most likely because, unlike
his circle of friends, Anquetin actually rejected the
new modern style he helped to create. Perhaps if
Anquetin had remained true to his work in his early
years, his name would be as recognizable today as Van
Gogh or Picasso. |
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Femme Dans La Rue
Girl With Flowers
Vase De Fleurs
In The Street
Portrait of A Woman, 1890
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To fully show the
extent of Anquetin’s change in style, one only has to
compare and contrast his early work to his later work.
For example, his earlier modern works were quite typical
to what you may see from a Neo-Impressionist: |
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Girl Reading a Newspaper, 1890
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To something a little
more classical in his later works: |
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Venus and Cupidon, 1926
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Sadly, Anquetin’s
embrace of the old masters was widely ignored and he
fell into obscurity. During his later years, Anquetin
particularly painted allegorical and Rubenesque-style
paintings. Anquetin even went on to write a book about
Rubens which was published in 1924.
In his later years, this old master styling dominated
Anquetin’s collection, including numerous anatomy
studies and sketches. |
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Anatomy Study Sketch
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Like most painters,
Anquetin was an accomplished lithographer as well.
Often, his lithography would be in the form of posters
(much like lifelong friend Toulouse-Lautrec). |
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Marguerite Dufay poster print
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Think that you may own
a piece of work by this great artist? We authenticate,
appraise and research all works by Louis Anquetin. |
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Pont de L’Europe |
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