Mondays, March 9 – March 30, 6 – 8pm
Edouard Vuillard. Woman in a Striped Dress (detail), 1895. Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon. National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. Public Domain.
$220; members $198
(4 classes)
About the Class
Who were the nabis? Join us as we explore the works and ideas of this fascinating group of fin-de-siècle artists, including Paul Sérusier, Pierre Bonnard, Édouard Vuillard, and Maurice Denis. Emerging in France during the late 1880s, this group rejected naturalism and impressionism in favor of a radically subjective, personal approach to art making. Taking the name nabis (“prophets” in Hebrew), they signaled their role as harbingers of a new type of expression that could reveal invisible realities and deeper truths. We will examine painting, prints, interior decoration, and even advertising, and discuss the aesthetics, cultural context, and legacy of these artists.
The class is online-only. More about online classes.
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Barnes classes will:
- Sharpen your observational and critical thinking skills.
- Improve your ability to communicate about art.
- Deepen your appreciation for cultures and histories outside your own.
Instructor
Larissa Bailiff
Specializing in late 19th- and early 20th-century French art and culture, Bailiff is an art historian, educator, and writer who holds degrees from UC Berkeley and NYU’s Institute of Fine Arts. She has lectured throughout the tristate area and offered dozens of in-gallery and online courses at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.
What Our Students Say
“The instructor is a gifted individual who is able to [engage] with all different kinds of learners and motivate us to want to learn more, see more, and experience more. I would highly recommend any course by this instructor.” —Collection Concentration: Medieval Modern with Kaelin Jewell
“Martha Lucy knows how to balance her lecture with fact, excellent painting selections, and inclusion of the students.” —The Art and Life of Toulouse-Lautrec with Martha Lucy
“The best class to understand the elements of art. The instructor’s expertise and warmth, along with the excellent discussions with my classmates, made it a truly wonderful experience.” —The Elements of Art with William Perthes
“This class offered rich insight into Picasso and his contemporaries—the gallery scene, turn-of-the-century politics, Catalan culture, along with Picasso’s approach to composition and contemporary European culture. It was so informative.” —Picasso in Focus: New Discoveries at the Barnes with Christine Romano and Naina Saligram
“Caterina loves the material she presents and infuses all her classes—of which I have taken many—with that infectious enthusiasm.” —Rendez-vous au Café: Café Culture in 19th-Century Art with Caterina Pierre
Go Further
Close-Looking Immersion: Cézanne’s Portrait of a Woman
Spend an hour with Cézanne’s haunting Portrait of a Woman. Instructor: William Perthes
Surrealism, Then and Now
Revisit the movement’s origin and global expansion and consider its legacy today. Instructor: Naina Saligram
Caravaggio: Revolutionary Painter of the Roman Baroque
Learn how Caravaggio rejected classical idealism for raw naturalism, fueling works with psychological intensity. Instructor: James Harper