the nabis

yet another of the metropolitan museum's wonderful exhibitions that deal with artists with a strong, clear sense of japonisme in their work.
see selections from the exhibition here

"At the turn of the last century a group of artists that included Bonnard, Denis, Roussel, Vuillard, and their circle—known as the Nabis, from the Hebrew word for prophet—took up the call to move beyond conventional easel paintings...."

more about the nabis later....

in this image by bonnard, note the flat fields of color, and the emphasis on the patterns on her dress. further, note the lines of the images, the woman, the dog, the tree, all with a grace, a line, heretofore unseen in western artwork.