
Commemorative Medal Vincent van Gogh
Department of Art after 1800
This small painting by Bonnard is rich with artistic ideas as the woman gently observes the child trying to feed himself alone. Based on a lithograph of 1895, this picture shows Bonnard’s maternal grandmother, Mme Frédéric Mertzdorff, seated at a table with Andrée Terrasse’s third child, Renée. The emphasis on the domed shape of the baby’s cranium, which is particularly evident in the painting, may reflect the slightly comical way babies’ heads are depicted in nineteenth-century Japanese prints.
This record is subject to revision due to ongoing research.