The Unforgotten... simply misplaced for a few decades

“The Annunciation” by Maurice Denis

Maurice Denis (1870-1943) was a member of the Nabis group of painters active in Paris at the turn of the century. Their credo (the name Nabis is derived from the Hebrew word for "prophet") called for the incorporation of aesthetic pleasure into every aspect of daily life, and the merging together of art and craft, an approach that would inform the Art Nouveau movement. Together, the Nabis celebrated the beauty of the natural world and domestic contentment in scenes that were highly decorative, with simplified, stylized forms built from areas of lavish patterning and sumptuous colour. Unlike his leading Nabis confrères, such as Édouard Vuillard and Pierre Bonnard, Denis was an avid writer, becoming the movement's chief theoretician. Yet he has remained largely beneath the radar. – Globe and Mail (Canada) 4/09/2007

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The above article was written regarding an upcoming Montreal Museum retrospective of Maurice Denis’ work. It would appear that given enough time all good artists eventually get their due. It is these “minor artists” and their “minor art movements” that have always given me the most comfort as a painter. Even Van Gogh went largely unrecognized for a number of decades after his death. – DN