{"id":10444,"date":"2019-03-07T21:45:29","date_gmt":"2019-03-08T05:45:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.howtopastel.com\/?p=10444"},"modified":"2019-03-12T22:43:20","modified_gmt":"2019-03-13T05:43:20","slug":"female-artist-marie-genevieve-navarre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.howtopastel.com\/2019\/03\/female-artist-marie-genevieve-navarre\/","title":{"rendered":"Lesser-Known Female Artist Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s time for my monthly round-up of pastels but I decided to do something a little bit different this time. I was looking through a little book I have called Women Artists<\/a> put out by the National Museum of Women in the Arts<\/a>. Funnily enough, on the same day<\/g> this book came to my attention on the bookshelf, I noticed on the calendar that International Women\u2019s Day is on 8th March. Right about now! Since I haven\u2019t done a blog focusing on a closeup look at a single painting for a while, I thought this was a perfect opportunity to present you with a pastel work done by a lesser-known female artist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The painter I’ve chosen is the French female artist Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre (1737-1795). Navarre, whose teacher was the famous Maurice Quentin de la Tour<\/a>, became well-known for her pastel portraits, a genre that had become fashionable in the 18th century. The one I have here to share with you is not of a member of the royal court. By her dress and demeanour, we might guess that this woman is instead, middle-class. The painting has such a luminous feel and presents this seated woman with such clarity. I’m sure she will speak to us any minute now!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Notice that the main colour scheme is basically a blue\/orange one. The figure is set slightly left of centre leaving room for the chair she sits on. The woman looks out but not with a direct gaze at us, the viewer. Instead, she looks slightly off to the right, just over our shoulder. She seems comfortable. She’s at ease in her pose and with being painted even showing a hint of a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre,\n“Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in. (61 x 50.2 cm).<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Now let’s look at the painting in closer detail. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre, “Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in, National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), Washington, DC – detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

First, the face. I love the combination between<\/g> blended and linear application. You can see this particularly on the right side where the artist appears to have used a grey pastel to tone down some of the colour. On the other hand, she’s used a creamy white to accentuate the light on the other side of the face. Navarre combines both pastels to create the lines on the subject’s forehead. The features are beautifully described with each part feeling fully three dimensional and carved out in space. I feel as if I could reach out and pinch the bridge of the nose, feel the bone beneath the skin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I love the hint of the smile in the lips, a smile that’s reflected in the slight crinkling of the eyes. (You can see the creasing that is beginning to show at the corner of the eye on the right.) A cast shadow from the bonnet on her face informs us clearly of the direction of the soft light source.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre, “Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in, National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), Washington, DC – detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The arms cross each other right at the bottom of the portrait. We see a pair of hands that are accustomed to work<\/g> (for instance, the very short thumbnail). Navarre perfectly captured the perspective, and turn of the hand, the placement of thumb and its cast shadow on the arm it cups. On the left, the hand is less detailed yet we feel how relaxed it is as it rests on the arm, fingers gently curled around. We see the translucency of the pale skin (can you see the faint impression of veins under the skin?) which suggests someone who works indoors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre, “Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in, National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), Washington, DC – detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

And then there’s the fabric, so deceptively simple. Folds are revealed by the curves and loops of pastel with colour and darks and lights defining the form. We feel the texture of the cloth – the dress fabric and the frilly lace at the end of the sleeve. The sheen and colour of the material are all displayed in a few well-placed lines of colour (and value).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre, “Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in, National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), Washington, DC – detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

This is dark yes? Can you see how Navarre gives us just enough information about the chair yet keeps it sitting in the background, not distracting our attention from the main subject of the woman? Both the dress and the chair are the same colour and value and they, along with the background at this place in the painting, are all kept in the dark value range. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre, “Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in, National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), Washington, DC – detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Navarre uses grey pastel to render the woman’s grey hair (is it powdered or is she not so young after all?). She also uses it to create the cast shadow made by the bonnet, to describe the lacy circle around the edge of her headwear, and to describe the shadow sides of the hat itself. Note how the artist incorporates the hairline – it’s not a solid line but a zigzag between hair and skin – subtle and effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n


<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre, “Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in, National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), Washington, DC – detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

And finally, there’s the background. (You can read a post I wrote about dealing with backgrounds here<\/a>.) It’s pretty much a deep blue but it subtly changes from dense dark to a glowing dark. In the detail above you can see how Navarre lightens the background behind the head giving a feeling of space. The figure doesn’t feel cramped nor does it feel cutout against the solidity of a flat dark background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s a close look at the other side of the painting. I captured this detail crop because I wanted to see if the artist incorporated any of the warm browns used in the figure. I couldn’t see if there was a colouration change in this digital image (has anyone seen the real thing??) but what I did discover was a quietly inserted signature with the date, 1774. Exciting huh?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Women
Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre, “Portrait of a Young Woman,” 1774, pastel on paper, 24 x 19 3\/4 in, National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA), Washington, DC – detail.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Sooooooo what do you think of this painting by the lesser known female artist Marie-Genevi\u00e8ve Navarre? I was taken by the physical and emotional impact of the piece. It seems a bit smaller than life-size. Like any painting, I’d love to see it in the real! I hope you’ll leave a comment and tell me what reastion<\/g> you have to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this blog post, I wanted to focus on this<\/em> painting and this<\/em> artist but I’d like to bring your attention to another lesser known female artist – Elizabeth Sparhawk-Jones<\/a>. I’m reading a fascinating book about this early successful 20th-century female artist. I first encountered her when I saw the painting, The Shoe Shop<\/a>, at the Art Institute of Chicago a few years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Another fantastic book I’m reading right now is called Broad Strokes: 15 Women Who Made Art and Who Made History (In That Order)<\/a> (get the title?! Broad strokes) beautifully written and brought to life by the author, Bridget Quinn. I highly recommend it!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And to finish off books I’m presently reading about female artists, I am soooooo enjoying Ninth Street Women<\/a> a book that looks at the lives of five women painters – Lee Krasner, Elaine de Kooning, Grace Hartigan, Joan Mitchell (a favourite of mine!), and Helen Frankenthaler. It really gives you a sense of time and place!!1<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Okay, one more – Women Artists: An Illustrated History.<\/a> This was one I read some time ago and it was a revelation… so many artists I’d never heard of.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And by the way, you may want to check out two earlier blogs, each on a lesser known female artist: Florence Rodway<\/a>, and Th\u00e9r\u00e8se Schwartze<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whew!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so that’s all for now. Happy International Women’s Day!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until next time,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gail<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

I recommend all the following books!! (To be transparent, if you purchase through these links, I do get a wee commission which all goes into helping support this blog. Thanks!!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n