Day 4 / Young Woman Writing

Pierre Bonnard, Young Woman Writing (Jeune femme écrivant), 1908. © 2021 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris

When we write, we bring what is inside to the outside; we put words, however indirectly or metaphorically or imperfectly, to what’s inside of us, feelings or experiences that previously were not concrete. —Nellie Hermann

In Pierre Bonnard’s painting Young Woman Writing, pearlescent gray light streams through the window in this daytime scene in Paris. Wavy, linear brushstrokes give the interior space a gauzy, atmospheric quality. The walls and furniture at the far side of the room—the armoire, wall, window, and chair—seem to melt into one another. We see an intensely focused woman sitting alone at a long crimson covered table. She writes hunched over, face anonymous, hidden behind her hair. Scattered papers across the tabletop create rhythmic punctuations across the field of red, skittering out of the picture frame on the left.

As curator Cindy Kang explains, “Bonnard’s placement of the papers seems purposeful. The artist left gaps in the red tablecloth that he later filled in with saturated, urgent strokes of white paint that have a messy, impasto quality. . . . He conveys a sense of urgency in this ephemeral moment of daily life.” There is a tangible immediacy and intimacy to the composition, not unlike the first draft of an impassioned letter. Bonnard’s domestic interior compels us to take notice of the beauty of our daily rituals. There is depth and richness, even mystery, to be found in the everyday—if we slow down. 

Young Woman Writing was painted after the artist traveled to the Netherlands, where he was inspired by seventeenth-century Dutch paintings of letter writing. A common subject of genre painting, letter writing symbolized the interior of a person, the process of capturing one’s innermost thoughts onto the page. Young Woman Writing also explores the relationship between writing and reflection. In the face of illness and loss, letter-writing can be a way to process grief and record one’s memories. It can help us understand ourselves, contemplate the world around us, and share our lived experiences with others.

reflections

• Who might you consider writing to at this time?

• How can writing serve as a transformative experience that helps you cultivate meaning and fortify your connection to others?

• What other rituals have you developed for maintaining and nurturing strength and dignity in the face of illness?

Sources

Delistraty, Cody. “You’ll Never Know Yourself: Bonnard and the Color of Memory.” The Paris Review, March 15, 2019.

Illingworth, Dustin. “At Home with the Intimists.” Lapham’s Quarterly, September 17, 2018. 

Kang, Cindy. “Barnes Takeout: Art Talk on Pierre Bonnard’s Young Woman Writing.” Barnes Foundation. April 15, 2020. Video, 8:08. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tfu-vZQyfR4. 

“Pierre Bonnard.” Artnet. Artnet Worldwide Corporation. Accessed October 8, 2021. www.artnet.com/artists/pierre-bonnard.