Fine Art Poster
From $39
A giclée print on 200gsm matte fine art paper, using a twelve-colour process for accurate, fade-resistant colour. Supplied unframed, delivered flat or rolled.
Bathers with Red Cow - Émile Bernard
Regular price
$39.00 USD
Sale price
$39.00 USD
Regular price
Archival giclée
Frames arrive ready to hang
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Made to order
Description
A characteristic example of Cloisonnism by Émile Bernard, featuring simplified forms and bold, flat colour planes.
Émile Bernard, a contemporary of Paul Gauguin, developed a distinct visual language during his time in Pont-Aven. This work displays the characteristics of Cloisonnism, a style defined by flat forms separated by dark contours. The composition avoids traditional perspective, opting instead for a decorative arrangement of figures against a simplified, golden-yellow ground.
The figures are rendered with minimal modelling, prioritising the clarity of their outlines over anatomical realism. The inclusion of the red cow in the upper left corner provides a chromatic contrast to the warm tones of the ground and the pale flesh of the bathers. Bernard uses colour as a structural element, applying it in broad, unmodulated areas that flatten the pictorial space. This approach reflects the influence of Japanese woodblock prints, which were widely circulated among the avant-garde artists in late 19th-century France.
By rejecting the naturalistic light and shadow of Impressionism, Bernard moves toward a more symbolic and synthetic representation of the subject. The arrangement of the bathers, some seated and others reclining, creates a rhythmic pattern across the surface of the canvas. The work avoids the depth of traditional academic painting, focusing on the relationship between the shapes and the surrounding colour fields. This piece captures the experimental spirit of the Pont-Aven school, where artists sought to simplify form to express a more direct, emotional response to their surroundings. The lack of atmospheric perspective ensures that the viewer remains focused on the interplay of the figures and the bold, non-naturalistic colour palette.
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Because every print is made to order, we don't offer change-of-mind returns, refunds or exchanges. If your order arrives faulty, damaged or incorrect, we'll replace it free of charge — just contact us within 48 hours of delivery. See our refunds page for full details.
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Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
Care and materials
Specific Features
Every Solis piece is made to order with archival, gallery-quality materials built to last.
- Museum-grade giclée printing for rich, fade-resistant colour
- Archival matte fine-art paper, FSC-certified
- Multiple sizes and framing options available
- Frames in black, natural wood, dark wood or white
- Framed prints arrive ready to hang
Care & Cleaning
To keep your artwork looking its best:
- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
- Avoid prolonged direct sunlight
- Never use liquid cleaners on the print or canvas surface
- Keep in a dry, room-temperature space
- Handle prints with clean, dry hands
Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Complete The Look
Bathers with Red Cow - Émile Bernard
Regular price
From $39.00 USD
Sale price
From $39.00 USD
Regular price
Fine Art Poster / Small Square (30x30 cm) / -
Artist Biography
Emile Bernard
Bernard invented cloisonnism at twenty and spent the rest of his life arguing about it. The technique, which uses bold flat colours separated by dark outlines (like cloisonne enamel), was developed in 1887 during conversations with Louis Anquetin. When Paul Gauguin arrived at Pont-Aven in Brittany the following year, Bernard shared the method with him. Gauguin adopted it, made it famous, and failed to credit Bernard. The quarrel lasted for decades.
He was raised by his grandmother, who owned a laundry in Lille, because his younger sister was ill and required his parents' full attention. He entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris but was expelled for insubordination. At the Academie Cormon he met Toulouse-Lautrec and Van Gogh; his friendship with Van Gogh produced some of the most important letters in art history.
Bernard and Gauguin fell out definitively in 1891 over the paternity of Symbolism and cloisonnism. Bernard believed he had been written out of the story, which he had. He spent years writing criticism and art history to set the record straight, producing first-hand accounts of the period that remain primary sources.
His later work turned conservative. He travelled to Egypt, studied the Old Masters, and repudiated the avant-garde experiments of his youth. The early paintings, made between 1886 and 1897 when he was barely out of his teens, are the ones that matter. He was brilliant too young and spent the rest of his career looking backwards. His correspondence with Van Gogh, preserved and published, is one of the most direct records of how two young painters in the 1880s thought about colour, composition and what painting was for.
He was raised by his grandmother, who owned a laundry in Lille, because his younger sister was ill and required his parents' full attention. He entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris but was expelled for insubordination. At the Academie Cormon he met Toulouse-Lautrec and Van Gogh; his friendship with Van Gogh produced some of the most important letters in art history.
Bernard and Gauguin fell out definitively in 1891 over the paternity of Symbolism and cloisonnism. Bernard believed he had been written out of the story, which he had. He spent years writing criticism and art history to set the record straight, producing first-hand accounts of the period that remain primary sources.
His later work turned conservative. He travelled to Egypt, studied the Old Masters, and repudiated the avant-garde experiments of his youth. The early paintings, made between 1886 and 1897 when he was barely out of his teens, are the ones that matter. He was brilliant too young and spent the rest of his career looking backwards. His correspondence with Van Gogh, preserved and published, is one of the most direct records of how two young painters in the 1880s thought about colour, composition and what painting was for.
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Fine Art Framed
From $119
The same fine art print in a solid wood frame with UV-protective acrylic glaze and rigid backing. Five frame colours. Arrives ready to hang.
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