When a contemporary designer, who is renowned as the “virtuoso of color,” collaborates with a legendary painter, celebrated for their vibrant palette, the resulting pairing is an absolute visual delight. This collaboration has now been brought to life in a new Australian exhibition that showcases the work of the post-Impressionist French painter in vivid and vibrant scenography.
The exhibition offers visitors the opportunity to immerse themselves in the colorful and dynamic world of this renowned artist, whose work continues to inspire and captivate audiences today. With its stunning visuals and expertly curated displays, the exhibition celebrates the unique creative vision of the painter and the designer, highlighting the bold use of color and rich artistic heritage of both.
Whether you’re a die-hard fan of the painter or simply appreciate the beauty and power of art, this exhibition is not to be missed. So come and experience the magic of this incredible collaboration for yourself and be transported into a world of vibrant color and inspired design.
The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) is showcasing an exclusive and exciting exhibition, Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi, which sees the renowned French-Iranian designer curate the works of post-Impressionist painter Pierre Bonnard. This unique exhibition, which opened last week, promises to be a sensory visual experience that immerses visitors in the vivid colors of Bonnard’s artwork.
India Mahdavi, who is known for her mastery of color and design, has created immersive physical spaces and set pieces that envelop audiences in the world of Bonnard’s paintings. By carefully mining the colors of Bonnard’s oeuvre, she has built out a truly unique and unforgettable exhibition that celebrates the artist’s rich artistic heritage and pushes the boundaries of what is possible with art curation.
Visitors to the exhibition can expect to be transported into a world of vibrant color and inspired design, where they can fully immerse themselves in the beauty and power of Bonnard’s artwork. So if you’re looking for a unique and unforgettable cultural experience, be sure to visit Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi at the NGV and discover the magic of this incredible collaboration for yourself.
At the launch of the exhibition, India Mahdavi shared her insights into the five-year project, describing it as a “conversation” between herself and Pierre Bonnard. As a renowned architect, decorator, and designer, Mahdavi has been dubbed the “Grande Dame of Color” and has repeatedly been listed on Architectural Digest’s top 100 most influential architects. Some even credit her with popularizing the trendy “Millennial pink.”
Mahdavi’s extensive knowledge of color and design is evident in the exhibition, which transforms Bonnard’s paintings into living set pieces that extend well beyond the frame. With Mahdavi’s expert curation, the colors of Bonnard’s oeuvre are brought to life in a way that celebrates the artist’s unique vision for favoring color over subject matter.
The visual marriage between Bonnard’s paintings and Mahdavi’s design is breathtaking, highlighting the shared passion for vibrant color and bold design that both artists embody. By breaking down the traditional boundaries between art and design, this exhibition offers visitors a truly unique and unforgettable experience that celebrates the power of color and creativity.
So whether you’re a longtime fan of Bonnard’s work or simply appreciate the beauty and power of art and design, be sure to visit the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria and discover the magic of this incredible collaboration for yourself.
The National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in Melbourne collaborated with the Musée d’Orsay Paris to bring together more than 100 pieces by post-Impressionist painter Pierre Bonnard for their latest exhibition. The NGV was able to secure a comprehensive catalog of Bonnard’s career, thanks to the generous loan of artworks from the Musée d’Orsay.
Bonnard was known for his vivid portraits of landscapes and domestic spaces, where color took precedence over subject matter. His rich and sensuous hues captured everyday scenes and nature in a way that evoked unseen emotions and feelings. One of his favorite subjects was his wife, who suffered from mental illness and frequently bathed multiple times a day. Bonnard depicted her floating and bathing in his paintings, magnifying the peacefulness of her body while she suffered mentally.
This exhibition celebrates Bonnard’s unique artistic vision and provides visitors with an opportunity to engage with some of his most iconic works. Through Mahdavi’s expert curation and the NGV’s collaboration with the Musée d’Orsay, visitors can experience the full spectrum of Bonnard’s career and appreciate his masterful use of color and form.
So if you’re looking for a truly immersive cultural experience that celebrates one of history’s most talented painters, be sure to visit the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition at the NGV and discover the magic of this incredible collaboration for yourself.
Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi is an exhibition that celebrates the vibrant colors of Pierre Bonnard’s art, both obvious and subtle. As Bonnard once wrote, “Certainly, color had carried me away. I sacrificed form to it almost unconsciously.” This exhibition showcases how Bonnard masterfully used color to convey emotions and create a deeply resonate and joyous viewing experience.
The exhibition is divided into several primary spaces, where the tenor and intensity of hue increase as viewers encounter work from the later stages of Bonnard’s career. The space is littered with set pieces such as tables, chairs, and couches designed by Mahdavi, which act as visual anchors, encouraging visitors to sit outside and within the artwork itself.
Mahdavi’s expert curation and design create a truly unique and immersive experience that allows visitors to fully appreciate the beauty and power of Bonnard’s art. By breaking down the traditional boundaries between art and design, this exhibition offers a fresh perspective on one of history’s most talented painters and highlights the enduring appeal of his captivating use of color.
So if you’re looking for a cultural experience that celebrates the beauty and power of color and design, be sure to visit the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria. It promises to be a unique and unforgettable experience that celebrates the magic of art and design in equal measure.
The first section of the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition is called “Theatre of the Everyday.” Mahdavi expertly uses sharp and pronounced feature walls to call attention to the subtle tones that are not immediately obvious to viewers in Bonnard’s early paintings. For example, Stroll in the Field (1896) is set against a sharp maroon wall that intensifies the deep green of the painting, creating a new intensity of feeling in an otherwise peaceful landscape rendering.
Another standout piece in this section is The Checkered Blouse (1892), which is a delight up close in the mise en scène. The seemingly sharp perpendicular lines of the tartan shirt are blurred in such a way that creates an experience that resists the focus viewers want. As a result, we are left almost glassy-eyed staring at the portrait, surrounded by Mahdavi’s bold and rigid wall colors, which intensify the physical space around us.
Mahdavi’s curation and design create a truly immersive experience that allows visitors to fully appreciate the beauty and complexity of Bonnard’s art. By carefully highlighting the subtle tones and details in his early works, this exhibition offers a fresh perspective on one of history’s most talented painters and highlights the enduring appeal of his captivating use of color.
So if you’re looking for a unique and unforgettable cultural experience that celebrates the beauty and power of art, be sure to visit the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria. It promises to be a true visual delight that immerses visitors in the vibrant and dynamic world of Pierre Bonnard.
One notable aspect of Pierre Bonnard’s artistic process is that he often painted entirely from memory, using sketches as a starting point and then completing the rest in his studio. For Bonnard, accuracy was not important; what mattered most was the sensation of recalling the scene.
This approach is evident in key works such as Table Set in a Garden (1908), which has a dreamlike, atemporal quality that lingers in an unfocused beauty before the eye. When viewed from a distance, thrilling backgrounds of hazy landscapes or domestic scenes emerge; when viewed up close, glorious colors harmonize together, with white blurring into blue and violet.
Mahdavi’s curation and design capture the essence of Bonnard’s unique artistic vision, showcasing the power and beauty of his use of color and form. By highlighting the dreamlike quality of his paintings and encouraging visitors to view them from different perspectives, this exhibition offers a fresh and exciting way to engage with one of history’s most talented painters.
So if you’re looking for a truly immersive cultural experience that celebrates the beauty and power of art, be sure to visit the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria. It promises to be a captivating visual journey that transports viewers into the vibrant and dynamic world of Pierre Bonnard.
India Mahdavi’s approach to color and design is quite different from Bonnard’s, as she subscribes to sharp contrasts and rules of color that sometimes involve pairing colors that “swear at each other.” As an interior designer, Mahdavi’s goal is to extend a visual motif found in Bonnard’s work to encircle viewers within the artwork as they move through it. She harnesses small fragments of hues that Bonnard would obsess over and extends them into the physical room.
The final space in the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition is a symphonic crescendo that must be seen to be believed. Mahdavi extracted patterns and colors from Bonnard’s paintings to create backdrops that offer an immersive experience of a home to visitors. The experience is total and all-encompassing, with viewers standing within the small margins of key paintings and wrapped in joyous tea greens and animated citrus colors that overwhelm in vibrancy and intensity. Some wallpaper patterns radiate an almost camp fifties aesthetic pleasure, modernizing and domesticating Bonnard’s work within the home once more.
Mahdavi’s expert curation and design create a truly unique and unforgettable experience that celebrates the beauty and power of art and design in equal measure. By breaking down the traditional boundaries between art and design, this exhibition offers a fresh perspective on one of history’s most talented painters and highlights the enduring appeal of his captivating use of color.
So if you’re looking for a cultural experience that celebrates the magic of color and design, be sure to visit the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria. It promises to be a true feast for the senses and a celebration of the transformative power of art.
One particularly striking corner of the Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi exhibition showcases many of Bonnard’s landscape paintings, such as Landscape with Tugboat (1930), set against a lively patterned wall of sharp greenery. Early sketches of landscapes are also included, creating a private sanctum that showcases Bonnard’s rich imagination and serves as a reminder of how he created these works entirely from memory. The space even includes a Claude Monet painting, Vétheuil (1879), juxtaposed against Bonnard to highlight the radical approach to color that he and his contemporaries took, where subjectivity and feeling were prioritized over subject matter.
In addition to Bonnard’s paintings, the exhibition features intimate personal photographs that offer insights into his life and work. As an early adopter of photography at the turn of the 20th century, Bonnard took photos of his relatives and wife using a favorite Kodak camera. Mahdavi artfully sets these black-and-white candid images against pink rosey wallpaper, emphasizing a childish naivete that the unrehearsed shots suggest. There are even a few bold self-portraits that create a sense of immediate intimacy with Bonnard, as viewers are encased by the warmth of the pinkish wall winking back at them.
Melbourne now has the rare pleasure of enjoying a radiant bright spot in its otherwise dark winter arts season with Bonnard: Designed by India Mahdavi. Mahdavi’s expert curation and design allow Bonnard’s vivid art to become a living experience, delivered with clarity and sharpness by a world-class and innovative designer. The exhibition is an exchange in creativity, cohesion, and color-obsession between Mahdavi and Bonnard that reanimates the post-Impressionist painters’ works for a contemporary audience while highlighting the sensuousness of color found in Mahdavi’s lush interiors. It’s a wonderful time to let color overwhelm and savor the experience.