Between 1927 and 1947 Bonnard produced more than sixty dining room scenes. Often included in these paintings is a woman (usually Marthe de Méligny) seated at a central table laid with food, dishes and other domestic objects, accompanied by a dog or a cat. In this painting, which draws inspiration from the remarkable interior views of the balcony room at Villa Castellamare in Arcachon, where Bonnard lived and worked for six months in 1930, de Méligny’s presence to the left of the canvas is almost imperceptible. According to Bonnard, ‘A figure should be a part of the background against which it is placed’.
Pierre Bonnard
French 1867–1947
Dining room overlooking the garden (The breakfast room) (Salle à manger sur le jardin) 1930–31
oil on canvas
159.6 × 113.8 cm
The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Given anonymously, 1941 (392.1941)
© 2023. Digital Image, The Museum of Modern Art, New York / Scala, Florence
