I hadn’t known about Jean-Jacques Henner, a late 19th century painter, before my visit to the Henner Museum, and even the museum itself admits that he’s not exactly world-renowned: their brochure describes the visit as “an opportunity to learn how an academic artist working in the era of Impressionism,” which is certainly damning with faint praise.
But I enjoyed my trip to this small (about 100 works) collection, since I liked Henner’s style – think Cezanne mixed with Titian, with a dash of Toulouse-Lautrec’s linear drawing manner. Most of all, I liked how the female nudes show Henner’s cheerful fandom for girls – an appreciation which is neither prurient (like Monsieur “I just did this model, and when I finish painting I’m going to do her again” Courbet) nor disinterested (like Signore “I’d rather be drawing boys” Michelangelo).
So, go if you like Henner or if, like Henner, you like plump, pale, auburn-headed girls. Oh, and there’s also a complete set of Goya’s Tauromachie.
