Woman in Profile

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

Henri Martin was an important French painter from Toulouse known for his contributions to the Neo-Impressionist movement. He painted this striking depiction of a woman seated outdoors before tall trees at a moment when he was just beginning to develop his mature style. The figure and background are painted with short, thickly applied strokes of pure color, filling the composition with energy and life. The trees are rendered with small hatching strokes and form a background of nearly abstract, decorative shapes. A highly celebrated artist during his lifetime, Henri Martin received commissions to produce large paintings to decorate the interiors of important buildings in Paris, including the Palais Royal, the Hôtel de Ville (city hall), the Sorbonne, the Palais de Justice, and Élysees Palace.