Pierre Cornu – Bouquet Of Roses In The Studio – Oil On Panel – Signed
Artist: Cornu Pierre (1895 – 1996, France)
Pierre Cornu (1895–1996)
Bouquet of Roses in the Studio (interior still life)
Oil on panel
Signed lower right “P. Cornu”
Dimensions: 65 × 51 cm (panel) — 82 × 67 cm (with frame)
Frame: modern matte black molding
Excellent condition
On a corner table covered with a white cloth, a generous bouquet of roses—yellow, pink, and white—spills out of a light-colored ceramic vase, next to a hardcover book lying flat. The scene unfolds in a corner of a studio: a light-colored wall, a painting hanging in the upper right, the dark upright of a chair or piece of furniture closing off the composition.
Everything is rendered with broad, thick, and lively brushstrokes, where the paint is imbued with light. The flowers are painted with vivid impasto, almost abstract up close, which recombine from a distance into a vibrant, spring-like mass. The light, fresh color palette—gray-green, white, pink, yellow—and the intimate framing reveal Cornu’s debt to Bonnard and Cézanne, constant references in his painting.
This still life reveals a lesser-known, and undoubtedly freer, side of the painter. Cornu owes his reputation to his female nudes, endlessly rendered against a sofa backdrop, which brought him commercial success in both France and the United States and sometimes earned him the reputation of a “superficial” artist. His flowers, interiors, and southern landscapes reveal a more adventurous colorist and a painter attentive to the material, who rediscovers here the spontaneity and pleasure of painting for its own sake. It is in these subjects that the quality of his brushwork and the sure hand of his chromatic sense are best measured.
The Artist
Pierre Cornu (Salon-de-Provence, 1895 – Aix-en-Provence, 1996)
Born into a wealthy family of oil and soap merchants, Pierre Cornu showed an early interest in drawing and color. A student of Othon Friesz, he was deeply and enduringly influenced by the Fauves and the Post-Impressionists, foremost among them Cézanne and Bonnard.
Beginning in the 1930s, he exhibited regularly in the major Parisian Salons (Automne, Indépendants, Tuileries) and was counted among the leading figures of southern French painting, in the tradition of Auguste Chabaud and René Seyssaud, alongside whom he exhibited in Marseille. After a stay in Morocco where he further enriched his palette, he settled permanently in Provence.
His exceptional longevity—he died at the age of 100—spanned nearly eighty years of generous, broad-brushed, and colorful painting, encompassing figures, nudes, portraits, landscapes, and still lifes.
Work on view at the gallery (07240)
Shipping: please contact us for shipping costs within France and internationally.
Bouquet of Roses in the Studio (interior still life)
Oil on panel
Signed lower right “P. Cornu”
Dimensions: 65 × 51 cm (panel) — 82 × 67 cm (with frame)
Frame: modern matte black molding
Excellent condition
On a corner table covered with a white cloth, a generous bouquet of roses—yellow, pink, and white—spills out of a light-colored ceramic vase, next to a hardcover book lying flat. The scene unfolds in a corner of a studio: a light-colored wall, a painting hanging in the upper right, the dark upright of a chair or piece of furniture closing off the composition.
Everything is rendered with broad, thick, and lively brushstrokes, where the paint is imbued with light. The flowers are painted with vivid impasto, almost abstract up close, which recombine from a distance into a vibrant, spring-like mass. The light, fresh color palette—gray-green, white, pink, yellow—and the intimate framing reveal Cornu’s debt to Bonnard and Cézanne, constant references in his painting.
This still life reveals a lesser-known, and undoubtedly freer, side of the painter. Cornu owes his reputation to his female nudes, endlessly rendered against a sofa backdrop, which brought him commercial success in both France and the United States and sometimes earned him the reputation of a “superficial” artist. His flowers, interiors, and southern landscapes reveal a more adventurous colorist and a painter attentive to the material, who rediscovers here the spontaneity and pleasure of painting for its own sake. It is in these subjects that the quality of his brushwork and the sure hand of his chromatic sense are best measured.
The Artist
Pierre Cornu (Salon-de-Provence, 1895 – Aix-en-Provence, 1996)
Born into a wealthy family of oil and soap merchants, Pierre Cornu showed an early interest in drawing and color. A student of Othon Friesz, he was deeply and enduringly influenced by the Fauves and the Post-Impressionists, foremost among them Cézanne and Bonnard.
Beginning in the 1930s, he exhibited regularly in the major Parisian Salons (Automne, Indépendants, Tuileries) and was counted among the leading figures of southern French painting, in the tradition of Auguste Chabaud and René Seyssaud, alongside whom he exhibited in Marseille. After a stay in Morocco where he further enriched his palette, he settled permanently in Provence.
His exceptional longevity—he died at the age of 100—spanned nearly eighty years of generous, broad-brushed, and colorful painting, encompassing figures, nudes, portraits, landscapes, and still lifes.
Work on view at the gallery (07240)
Shipping: please contact us for shipping costs within France and internationally.
900 €
Period: 20th century
Style: Modern Art
Condition: Excellent condition
Material: Oil painting on wood
Width: 61 cm / 82 cm encadré
Height: 51 cm / 67 cm encadré
Reference (ID): 1777493
Availability: In stock
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