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Théo van Rysselberghe
Belgian, 1862–1926
Sylvie Descamps Monnom
1900
Sylvie Descamps Monnom, van Rysselberghe’s mother-in-law, ran a publishing house in Brussels that produced art periodicals. In this portrait, her tastes and interests are represented by the accessories surrounding her: an exotic Persian rug, a vase of irises on the mantelpiece, and four paintings on the wall. Van Rysselberghe’s pointillist technique reflects his sitter’s interest in avant-garde art. Small touches of pure color combine to produce a convincing sense of three-dimensional space and solidity, while finer brushstrokes are used to record the features of Madame Monnom’s face and hands.
Image Caption
Théo van Rysselberghe, Sylvie Descamps Monnom, 1900, oil on canvas. Clark Art Institute, 1967.2
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
46 x 35 9/16 in. (116.8 x 90.3 cm)
Frame: 53 x 42 9/16 x 2 1/4 in. (134.6 x 108.1 x 5.7 cm)
Object Number
1967.2
Acquisition
Acquired by the Clark, 1967
Status
Off View
Select Bibliography
. Gazette des Beaux-Arts: Chronique des Arts. Feb. 1968.. William M. Ittmann, Jr.. "Van Rysselberghe's Portrait of Mme. Monnom.". 67:3.. Art News.. (April 1968).:pp. 46-47, 64-66.. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Paintings on Exhibition, July 1968. Exhibition brochure. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1968. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1970. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling & Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1972. Norman, Geraldine. Nineteenth-Century Painters and Painting: A Dictionary. London: Thames & Hudson, 1977. Lester Lefton and Laura Valvatine.. Mastering Psychology.. Newton (MA): Allyn and Bacon.. 1984.. Lester Lefton.. Psychology, 3rd ed.. Newton (MA): Allyn and Bacon.. 1984.. Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1984. Kern, Steven, ed. List of Paintings in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1992. Lees, Sarah, ed. Nineteenth-Century European Paintings at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Williamstown, MA: Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute; New Haven and London: distributed by Yale University Press, 2012.
Provenance
Henri Cuypers, Brussels (in 1927); [Galerie de l’Institut, Paris]; Guy Pogu, Paris; sale, Christie’s, London, 2 Dec. 1966, no. 37, as Portrait de la Mère du Peintre, sold to Arthur Tooth and Sons, London, as agent for Clark; Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 1966.