Rousseau Boxed Notecards

Henri Rousseau (1844–1910), a self-taught artist, created some of the most captivating images in Modern art. The bold style and clear pictorial design of his dreamlike images won him the admiration of his contemporaries, including Picasso, Kandinsky, and Surrealists Ren? Magritte and Max Ernst.

A painter by hobby, Rousseau first exhibited in the 1886 Salon des Ind?pendants, in which he participated regularly for the rest of his life. In 1893, Rousseau decided to devote his life to art and retired from his job in the customs service in Paris. Rousseau painted a wide range of subjects, including portraits, landscapes, still lifes, and genre scenes. However, he is perhaps best known for his depictions of fantastical jungle scenes, inspired by trips to the zoo and botanical gardens, illustrations on postcards and in books, and his imagination.

The four paintings reproduced in this notecard set are from the extraordinary collection of The Barnes Foundation in Merion, Pennsylvania, which houses the world’s largest private collection of French Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, and early Modern art, including eighteen paintings by Rousseau.