Lot Essay
The present work shows Lucie Hessel in her room in the Château des Clayes. Lucie was the wife of the picture dealer Jos Hessel, whose gallery Bernheim-Jeune handled Vuillard's work from around 1900. She was a favourite model and close friend of the artist, and appears in many of his works, including Madame Hessel on the Sofa, 1900, now in the Walker Art Gallery, Merseyside.
The constantly changing display of contemporary art that hung on the Hessels' walls, including works by Cézanne, Renoir and Toulouse-Lautrec, was of great interest to Vuillard. His use of pictures within pictures became a witty device in his many oils including the present picture.
The constantly changing display of contemporary art that hung on the Hessels' walls, including works by Cézanne, Renoir and Toulouse-Lautrec, was of great interest to Vuillard. His use of pictures within pictures became a witty device in his many oils including the present picture.