Les Nabis

Led by Paul Seriusier, the Nabis group of painters were dedicated to following the example of Paul Gaughin in his painting and color techniques. Their name derived from the Hebrew word navi, which means prophet. The group was  comprised of Post-Impressionist artists who became interested in graphic art. The movement shared many of the ideas of the Art Nouveau style and  Symbolism. Les Nabis began as a rebel group of young artists who met and  formed at the Academie Julian in Paris. In addition to fine arts, members of  the group also worked in printmaking, poster design, illustration, textiles,  furniture, and set design. Their emphasis on design was shared by the parallel Art Nouveau movement. Both groups also had close ties to theSymbolist painters. In 1890, they began to successfully participate in public exhibitions, while most of their artistic output remained in private hands or in the possession of the artists themselves. By 1896, the unity of the group had already begun to break: The Hommage à Cézanne, painted by Maurice Denis in 1900, recollects memories of a time already gone, before even the term Nabis had been revealed to the public. Meanwhile, most members of the group—Maurice Denis, Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard— could stand, artistically, on their own. Only Paul Sérusier had problems to overcome—though it was his Talisman, painted at the advice of Paul Gauguin, that had revealed to them the way to go. Woman with Dog Pierrre Bonnard Among the artists who considered themselves Nabis was Maurice Denis, whose journalism put the aims of the group in the eye of a progressive audience, and whose definition of painting — "a flat surface covered with colors assembled in a certain order" — expressed the Nabis approach. His Théories (1920; 1922) summed up the Nabis' aims long after they had been superseded by the fauve painters and by cubism. Other Nabis were Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard, Ker-Xavier Roussel, Paul Ranson andFélix Vallotton. The sculptor Aristide Maillol was associated for a time with the group. The post-Impressionist styles they embraced skirted some aspects of contemporary art nouveau and Symbolism. The influence of the English Arts and Crafts Movement set them to work in media that involved crafts beyond painting: printmaking, book illustration and poster design, textiles and set design. Maxime Dethomas  Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947), le Nabi très japonard      Maurice Denis (1870-1943), le Nabi der schönen Ikonen Maxime Dethomas (1869-1929)  Meyer de Haan (1852-1895), Nabi hollandais  Rene Georges Hermann-Paul (1864-1940)  Henri-Gabriel Ibels (1867-1936), Georges Lacombe (1868-1916), le Nabi sculpteurAristide Maillol (1861-1944) Paul Ranson (1864-1909), le Nabi plus japonard que le Nabi japonard József Rippl-Rónai (1861-1927) Ker-Xavier Roussel (1867-1944)Paul Sérusier (1864-1927), le Nabi à la barbe rutilante Félix Vallotton (1865-1925) Jan Verkade (1868-1946), le Nabi obéliscal Edouard Vuillard (1868-1940)