The Bridge (Le pont)
1897/1898 (published 1899)
Medium
3-color lithograph on wove paper
Dimensions
image: 27 x 40.8 cm (10 5/8 x 16 1/16 in.) sheet: 40.8 x 52.7 cm (16 1/16 x 20 3/4 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Virginia and Ira Jackson Collection
Accession Number
2000.180.13
Art Historical Context
Pierre Bonnard's *The Bridge (Le pont)*, created around 1897–1898 and published in 1899, captures the artist's early mastery of printmaking during a vibrant period in French art. As a key member of Les Nabis—an avant-garde group influenced by Paul Gauguin and Japanese woodblocks—Bonnard emphasized bold colors, decorative patterns, and intimate scenes over realistic representation. This work reflects the late 19th-century explosion of color lithography in Paris, where posters by artists like Toulouse-Lautrec transformed urban streets into galleries, making art accessible to the masses. Printed...
About the Artist
Pierre Bonnard
Pierre Bonnard (1867–1947) was a French painter and printmaker who became a leading figure in the Post-Impressionist movement and a founding member of Les Nabis. Born on October 3, 1867, in Fontenay-aux-Roses, France, Bonnard initially studied law at his father's insistence, graduating and briefly practicing as a barrister in 1888. However, his true passion lay in art, and he had simultaneously at...