Famous worldwide for his pointillist paintings, Paul Signac (1863-1935) is less well known for his watercolors; its in 1892, when resting in the small Mediterranean village of Saint Tropez, that the artist discovered the immense possibilites of this specific technique which was to become his favorite means of expression. Whether travel notes and writings hastily put together or more precise studies preceding larger scale works, Signac's watercolors embody the artist's amazing grip on colors and the effects of light, from dusk to dawn, on the sea, the sky and nature. Signac's hedonistic, revolutionary and powerful use of color as well as his enthusiastic and musical touch aiming at expressing "sensation" have influenced many artists of his generation, Matisse in particular, during the first days of the Fauves.
From Signac's first works illustrative of his knowledge of Japan to his large series dedicated to the harbors of France comissioned at the end of his life, this rich and complete monograph relates the progress of an artist fond of freedom. His numerous watercolors, so well defined by their poetic balance and harmony, definitely belong to a genre of its own.
About the Author
Marina Ferretti is an art historian and since 1985 has been responsible for the Signac archives; she worked on the artists catalogue raisonne and organized many international exhibitions on impressionism and post-impressionism, among which, the Signac retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, in Fall 2001.
