Edouard Vuillard first met
Jos Hessel Of at dinner in 1895. Then the acquaintance was short, and properly introduced the men to each other in the summer of 1900,another artist
Felix Vallotton. It happened at the Chateau de La At (Château de la Naz) near Lausanne in Switzerland. While Vuillard parted with their previous patrons, Misia and Tade Natansona. Soon they were replaced by Jos Hessel and his wife Lucy.
The Vuillard often traveled with their spouses, which became his major patrons and most faithful friends. Jos Hessel was granted an exclusive right to sell the modernist works, and Lucy was his Muse, lover and confidant. The husband and wife, in the house which Vuillard died in 1940 of a heart attack, often appeared in his paintings.
This portrait of his patron, which distracted from the reading, the artist wrote shortly after formal meetings with Jesselee. Emphasizing its proximity to the art dealer, the author allowed himself to add to the image humorous touches. However, the solid, almost frightening, the sight of Jos Hessel recalls its status of a rich and powerful man, one of the most prominent collectors and art dealers of the twentieth century.
On the occupation of the sitter of the picture says behind his back
"Houses along a road" (1881)
Paul Cezanne. Hessel bought the painting early in his career, and now it is in the collection of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. In a sense, Vuyer pays homage to Cezanne as the "father of modernism", and his patron and friend – as a supporter and connoisseur of the avant-garde art. Perhaps this work most clearly illustrates the phrase of the artist:
"I don't do portraits. I write people in their environment".
By the way, having sold one of the works of Cezanne, Hessel bought a house in Vaucresson, which was named in honor of the artist – "Clos Cezanne" (Clos Cézanne). It is possible that we are talking about "Houses along a road". The portion of the estate and its owners depicted in another work of Vuillard –
"Morning in the garden" (1924).
"Portrait of Jos Hessel of" generations was kept by the descendants of patron, until it was auctioned at Christie's on March 23, 2018.
Author: Vlad Maslov