La naissance d'Annette 1897 - 1901

Curator: Welcome, everyone. We’re looking at Édouard Vuillard’s lithograph, "La naissance d'Annette," created between 1897 and 1901. Editor: It has a very ephemeral feeling; almost like a half-formed memory, or a whisper of domesticity. Curator: It's a stunning example of Intimism, which aimed to capture private, everyday scenes, reflecting Vuillard’s close association with the Nabis. He and other members explored themes of spirituality and mysticism through less obvious imagery. Consider what might be inferred about societal perceptions of motherhood at this time through the artist's deliberate positioning and emphasis. Editor: Yes, but the visible objects strike me. The striped blanket, the floral cushions, and that patterned wallpaper create such a cocoon-like effect around the birthing scene, turning motherhood almost into an artistic spectacle of pattern and tone. There's even a decorative screen behind the bed. Curator: Note how the lithographic process here softens everything, the patterns seem to dissolve slightly. The birth of Annette is portrayed as an integral moment, subtly merging with its environment, yet the composition obscures most clear details, keeping the core experience private and indistinct, reflecting society’s reserved public approach towards such events. Editor: And the relative lightness and fragility of the lithograph— a medium valued for commercial reproduction, making something delicate easily and widely accessible– further adds to this paradoxical quality; something intimate shared widely. Curator: Indeed. Vuillard offers an interesting dichotomy: it’s a birth scene, and yet, what do we actually see of the actual birth? More than representing, he is pointing toward the sacred act that is birth, allowing room for contemplation and personal understanding. Editor: In the end, it suggests both celebration and deep contemplation about womanhood, domesticity, and the evolving role of both in that fin-de-siècle societal flux. Curator: A perfect synthesis of intimacy and universal symbolism rendered in gentle hues, making it truly resonate, doesn't it?