Park Monceau in Parijs 1937

This sketchy scene of Park Monceau in Paris was etched by Pierre Bonnard sometime in his life, we don’t know exactly when. Just look at the nervous energy of those lines! Can you imagine him, head down, intensely focused on the plate, as he scratched away? To me, it feels like he was trying to capture not just the look of the park, but also the feeling of being there. I love how the lines build up to suggest the depth of the space, and the way the figures seem to emerge from the scene. What was he thinking as he created this piece? Was he trying to create a romantic image of Parisian life, or was he simply interested in capturing a fleeting moment? I’m sure he was looking at what Manet and Degas were up to at the time too, all of them inspired by photography. Whether it was intentional or not, this image has an immediacy and intimacy that I find really compelling. It’s a reminder that art doesn’t always have to be polished and perfect; sometimes the most interesting things happen when we let go and just allow ourselves to be in the moment.