French Prints from Impressionism to Art Nouveau

The exhibition presents over 300 works by outstanding artists active in France in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in circles associated with Impressionism, Symbolism, post-Impressionism and Art Nouveau. Their prints belong to the largest Polish collection of modern French printmaking, numbering around 1110 works, amassed for nearly a quarter of a century by its great enthusiast – Feliks Jasieński.

The authors include: Pierre Bonnard, Félix Bracquemond, Jules Chéret, Maurice Denis, Paul Gauguin, Auguste Lepère, Édouard Manet, Camille Pissarro, Odilon Redon, Auguste Renoir, Henri Rivière, Paul Sérusier, Paul Signac, Alfred Sisley, Théophile Alexandre Steinlen, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Félix Vallotton, Édouard Vuillard and others. The display revolves around a few major themes.

The atmosphere of Paris is introduced by numerous depictions of this city accompanied by satirical and genre scenes as well as images of its celebrities, upper class characters and ordinary residents. Through their diverse styles, the exhibited objects reflect the plurality of trends in French art of that time.

Further on, we present artists of great merit for the renewal of etching – prints by the founders and members of the Société des aquafortistes established in 1862, both French and foreign artists, cooperating with the association. Most of these works, preceding Impressionism, are distinguished by their artistic qualities and fresh approach to etching – applied in an impressionist and sketchy way and highlighting the play of lights and shadows.