The portrait is a favourite theme in the work of Édouard Vuillard, and the artist particularly liked to depict his family and friends in the intimacy of everyday life.

Our painting, Le déjeuner du petit Jean Gosset en Normandie, was commissioned by Vuillard's friends Dr. Antonin Gosset, a leading digestive surgeon, and Mania, his wife. 
In the summer of 1911, the Gossets had rented a villa in Normandy, not far from the village of Cricquebœuf, where Vuillard spent his holidays with Jos and Lucy Hessel. 
According to his diary, Vuillard painted Le déjeuner du petit Jean Gosset en Normandie in five days, between 12 and 17 September 1911.

The composition depicts Jean, the son of the Gosset couple; a boy with blond curls, seated in a rattan armchair, sitting in the garden of the property. Vuillard, sensitive to the figure of childhood, had fun capturing the instantaneous gesture of the little boy who, with his mouth half-open, is trying to eat. In the centre of the painting, the large tablecloth, the silver tray, the three blue plates and the kettledrum form a subtle still life. The lush greenery contrasts sharply with the model's red clothing and the patterned tablecloth. The sun illuminates the composition, the luxuriant foliage that serves as a backdrop like a tapestry gives this intimate and peaceful scene a softness and poetry specific to the artist.

76 galleries are participating in this open-air event. A great diversity of specialties will be represented. During this walk, each gallery will unveil an artist, a work or an object selected for its extraordinary character. Art lovers will be able, thanks to this eclectic route, to unearth the rare object: ceramics, jewelry, watchmaking, silverware, antiques, old paintings, marine objects, decorative arts, Chinese art, Haute Epoque or 18th century furniture, modern creation. or contemporary… A journey to the heart of Paris through 7000 years of history and rare objects.

Since 2005, the Galerie des Modernes spends in January its Winter headquarters in Brussels to participate in the BRAFA ART FAIR.

This year, the Fair adapts to health constraints and invents a new concept, BRAFA in the Galleries:
From January 27 to 31, Art Amateurs are invited to discover within the participating galleries themselves, the works initially chosen for Brussels.

We will therefore have the pleasure of welcoming you to the gallery from Wednesday January 27 from 10 AM to 5.30 PM to present our BRAFA 2021 hanging.

We invite you to watch this short video highlighting two works from our collection.

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As part of the "Rendez-vous" evening, we will highlight an emblematic work: the "Portrait-robot of André Schoeller" produced in 1968 by ARMAN.

This three-dimensional work, presented as a painting, is an accumulation of effects and personal objects under plexiglass embodying the protean personality of André Schoeller. Dandy, passionate collector, he was a gallery owner and then a renowned expert in modern art, African art and Amerindian art.

All these objects chosen by the artist in his model’s home reflect the life of his friend, a well-known figure in the art market and in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés district where he loved to walk.

In this Portrait-robot, references are not lacking; Arman has chosen in particular to evoke Africa with a fly hunt and an old coin, America with a Sioux dagger and its beaded scabbard, modern art with an original canvas by Jean Messagier, artist from the André Schoeller gallery.

This eclectic accumulation seemed to us to be perfectly representative of the spirit of Saint-Germain des Prés and its great artistic diversity.