Untitled (Women and Birds) - Paul Sérusier

A symbolic composition by Paul Sérusier featuring two figures within a flattened, decorative environment of foliage and birds.

This work by Paul Sérusier displays the stylistic characteristics of the Nabis group, a collective of French artists active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Sérusier, a central figure in this movement, moved away from the naturalistic representation of subjects in favour of flattened forms, decorative patterns, and symbolic colour choices. The composition features two female figures integrated into a dense, stylised environment filled with foliage and birds. The treatment of space is deliberately shallow, with the figures and the surrounding elements existing on a single, unified plane. This approach reflects the Nabis interest in the decorative potential of painting, often drawing inspiration from Japanese woodblock prints and medieval tapestries.

The colour palette is dominated by warm, earthy tones, particularly deep reds and ochres, which create a sense of unity across the canvas. The figures are rendered with simplified outlines, and their features are understated, allowing the overall rhythm of the shapes to take precedence. The presence of birds perched on branches held by the figures adds a narrative or allegorical quality, common in Sérusier's work during this period. He often explored themes related to nature, mysticism, and the domestic sphere through this lens of abstraction. By rejecting traditional perspective and modelling, Sérusier invites the viewer to engage with the painting as a constructed surface rather than a window into a three-dimensional space. This piece serves as an example of the transition toward modernism, where the artist's subjective vision and the formal qualities of the medium dictate the final result. The work remains a clear representation of the Nabis philosophy, which sought to bridge the gap between fine art and the decorative arts through a synthesis of form and colour.