The Jean-Jacques Henner Museum is interested in women artists, through the exhibition “Elles, les pupils de Jean-Jacques Henner”, to be visited from November 28, 2024 to April 28, 2025.
THE women were not able to attend theoretical courses at the School of Fine Arts before 1897, and could not access workshops before 1900. However, many women also wanted to become artists, to master painting, sculpture, drawing … Some people have therefore decided to offer their own courses for these women artists.
The Jean-Jacques Henner museum devotes an exhibition to these creators, and especially to those who learned their art alongside Jean-Jacques Henner. From November 28, 2024 to April 28, 2025, come and discover the unique exhibition “They, the students of Jean-Jacques Henner“.
The exhibition reveals more than 80 paintings, photographs, drawings et lettres which tell of this special period, when women fought to claim their rights to learn and create.
In the 19th century, women could not have formal training in art. To circumvent this ban, several private workshops open their doors. In 1974, Jean-Jacques Henner and his friend Carolus-Duran decided to also create their own workshop for women who wanted to learn the art of painting. It is in this class that designers like Dorothy Tennant, Louise Abbéma, Madeleine Smith, Fanny Fleury and Ottilie W. Roederstein were able to perfect their skills.
Jean-Jacques Henner also opened his personal workshop to several students, who were also able to become important friends and sisters. This exhibition highlights 17 women artists – among the 150 who studied with Henner – who benefited from the painter’s teaching at the end of the 19th century.
Thanks to numerous archives, letters, diaries, photographs, notebooks, the Jean-Jacques Henner museum has been able to reconstruct this period of the artist’s life, in the service of women. Visitors thus discover the Henner art teacherand can admire the works of women artists, and the way in which they were able to train and work in a society which still closed many doors to them.
It is an opportunity for visitors to (re)discover important female artists, sometimes unjustly forgotten. In the paintings of these painters, we can see the influence of the professor, who played an important role in highlighting these women.
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