Biography

Henri Lebasque studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Angers, then, after moving to Paris in 1886, studied briefly under Bonnat, then under Humbert, whom he assisted in the decoration of the Panthéon. More importantly, he met and learned from Pissarro.

In 1893 he met Luce and Signac at the Salon des Indépendants, and as a result he adopted Pointillism for a few years. In the 1900s he lived in Lagny with his family and painted landscapes of the neighbouring Marne forest. His painting underwent drastic changes when he discovered the south of the country. He would thereafter live in other French regions: Vendée, Brittany and Normandy, where he stayed at Les Andelys for some time, but his home from home was between Sanary and Nice.

He painted members of his family in the settings in which he lived, mostly in Provence. His work shares some themes of his friend Bonnard. But although he exhibited with the Fauves, and admired Matisse, Rouault, Dufy, Valtat and Manguin (who introduced him to the Midi), he remained distinct from them in style. Lebasque was well known in his lifetime. He collaborated on the decorations of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées and of the Atlantic liner Paris. He is remembered for: Nymphs at their Bath; The Sunshade; Girl with Hydrangeas; Great Nude on a Pink Sofa.

He took part in the following collective exhibitions: Salon des Indépendants, 1886; Salon des Artistes Français; and later the Salon d’Automne, of which he was a founding member in 1903 and on whose committee he sat until his death. A set of his works was shown in 1937 at Masters of Independent Art ( Maîtres de l’Art Indépendant) at the Petit Palais. In 1957, 20 years after his death, a retrospective exhibition was held at the Musée des Ponchettes in Nice, and in 1981 his works were exhibited at St-Paul-de-Vence.

Museum and Gallery Holdings

Angers: The Artist’s Mother
Geneva (Petit Palais): The Child’s Toilette (1900)
Lille (MBA): Notre-Dame under Snow
Nantes: Vallée de la Garde
Paris (MAM): The Cigarette; Nude; Woman with Necklace