In the spring and summer of 2025, we will be hosting an exhibition on the pioneering French artist Pierre Bonnard. Often called the master of colour, his paintings are beloved by museum visitors around the world.

When Pierre Bonnard (1867–1947) displayed his work in the late 19th and early 20th century, audiences were struck by the artist's bold and innovative way of depicting people, spaces and landscapes. His paintings can be seen as a separate universe of colour and light, imbued with strong presence and emotion. Many artists were influenced by Bonnard's images, even in the Nordic countries.

Pierre Bonnard, Jeunes filles à la mouette, 1917. Oil on canvas. Petit Palais, musée des beaux-arts de la Ville de Paris.

Pierre Bonnard, Fenêtre ouverte sur la Seine, 1912. Oil on canvas. Musée des Beaux-Arts Jules Chéret, Nice.

Pierre Bonnard, Interior with a Woman in a Wicker Chair 1920. Oil on canvas. Nationalmuseum

Pierre Bonnard, Nude in Counter-Light. Oil on canvas. Nationalmuseum

Pierre Bonnard, Poppies in a Vase, ca 1915. Oil on canvas. Nationalmuseum

In the spring of 2025, visitors will be able to experience Bonnard's art in a major exhibition at Nationalmuseum. Several of the paintings on display will be loans from France, from the Musée d'Orsay and Petit Palais in Paris, the Musée Bonnard in Le Cannet, and the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Nice. To highlight the relationship between Bonnard's paintings and the Nordics, we will also display works by influential Nordic artists.

'Bonnard and the Nordic Countries' is the first exhibition of its kind in Sweden. It is organised in cooperation with Lillehammer Kunstmuseum in Norway, where it will travel after closing in Stockholm.

French-Swedish collaboration

For this project, Nationalmuseum is collaborating with the French Embassy, the French Cultural Institute in Sweden and the French Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm.