Painter, lithographer and patron saint of French plumbing, Pierre Bonnard was born at Fontenay-aux-Roses near Paris. Pierre's pere wanted him to be a legal eagle but Pierre found the law a bore and went off to L'Ecole des Beaux Arts where he joined the group of young artists called the Nabis (Prophets) who were all of a stew about Gauguin and his ideas about the unspoiled life and synthesing old masters.
After Pierre won a 'design-a-bubbly-poster' competition, his dad finally saw the light and let him go the whole hog's bristles. In 1893 he met Marthe Boursin and, impetuous thing that he was, made her Madame Bonnard in 1925.
Meanwhile, back at the canvas face he got himself himself a prestigious dealer, several successful one-man shows and a reputation as a dynamic dauber. 1925 was also the year he bought a Mediterranean villa, which he called 'My Caravan' (odd name, but saved him a fortune in council tax).
Give or take the odd trip 'up north' to Deauville for some light change, Pierre stayed in his 'Caravan' for the rest of his days painting Madame Bonnard, who was apparently very particular about personal cleanliness ('oui', every picture tells a story) and admiring his dazzling collection of silver chocolate wrappers which reflected the Mediterranean light so entrancingly.
Thankfully, Pierre's art doesn't fit neatly into any category or 'ism' but pedants will be relieved to know that his work's occasionally described as 'intimist' or 'biographical' as in 'this is one I did of the wife having a bath,' and 'here's the wife having another bath. Mon dieu, isn't she pruney!'
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