This magnificent Art Nouveau portrait of a Seated Woman is by Louis Valtat, one of the forerunners of Fauvism, an early 20th century French pictorial movement based on the liberation of colour and the autonomy of the work in its relationship to visible reality. He participated in the exhibition that established the Fauves as a group at the Salon d’Automne in 1905.

Valtat studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and at the Académie Julian, and spent some time in the workshop of Gustave Moreau. Although less intellectual than the Nabis, he kept company with the members of the group. Yet his art remains far from the spirituality expressed by painters such as Maurice Denis. He abandoned his early Pointillist technique and adopted a touch based on larger brushstrokes.

In this highly stylized portrait of a seated woman in profile, the artist displays all of his Fauvist talent by applying large brushstrokes of wild, violently expressive colours dominated by tones of red.

In his time, Valtat was undoubtedly one of the painters who drew with colours and applied them pure. He simplified form, created clear composition and played with contrasting colours. He chose colours that do not correspond to those of the objects he painted, calling for art to be based on instinct.

The composition, based on curves and counter-curves, is very controlled. There is no perspective and shadows are removed. The whole is well balanced and highly decorative, evoking constant movement.

The scene depicted here is trivial, taken from everyday life. Valtat created a smaller, more stylized gouache of the same subject that probably served as a study for our work.