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artbygrace7 · 4 years

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Summary on Chapter 1 from Renoir' Dancer: The Secret Life of Suzanne Valadon

Suzanne Valadon was born on September 23rd of 1865 in Bessines, France. Valadon's name given to her at birth was "Marie-Clementine" and she was given her mother's maiden name as her last name because her father's identity was never revealed. Valadon was born at a time when infant mortality was rampant. Suzanne's mother, Madeleine, raised Suzanne in an inn that she worked at as a linen maid up until Suzanne was weaned. Suzanne was then sent to live with her grandmother where she later on passed away and Suzanne was then sent to live with some distant family members. Years had passed by and Valadon became accustomed to the peasant life but her mother got fed up of living in the Bessines and she decided to move to Paris once the new railroads were being put into place. Madeleine Valadon hoped for a better life in Paris but she was met with political turmoil after the Prussian invasion. Suzanne Valadon was raised around much chaos and often times was left to fend for herself as a small child while her mother and her older sister worked. Suzanne's mother Madeleine found a town near Paris that was more relaxed called Montmartre. Suzanne and her older sister were both moved to Montmartre with their mother. Valadon was well known in town for causing a ruckus and stirring trouble even as a young child. Madeleine Valadon felt that Suzanne needed structure so she sent Suzanne off to a school run by nuns where she would clash with the nuns constantly. It was at the school that Suzanne was supposed to learn how to read, write, and how to complete household duties which were skills useful for a woman to have. Although the nuns tried to instill their values into Suzanne as much as they could, she would continue to rebel. As Suzanne got older she realized that she never really learned how to stay still because she loved to move her body. Valadon went on to become a trapeze artist for a circus after she left school. Unfortunately her career in the circus did not last long because Suzanne suffered a grave accident. Suzanne was told that she could never again perform acrobatics again and that news caused her to suffer greatly. She truly thought that being a trapeze artist was what she was meant to do but while she was in recovery Suzanne discovered that she was passionate about art as well. Valadon fell in love with drawing and even became good friends with an Italian woman who would model for artists. Suzanne was eager to get involved but the art community was heavily discriminatory against women. The art community in Suzanne's area was vibrant and thriving but she felt that the only way she could infiltrate this male dominated space was by becoming a model for the artists herself. At the time for a woman to be a model for a painter was almost as scrutinized by society as a prostitute was. Suzanne still needed to find a way to earn an income and luckily one of the first painters she worked for was the talented Pierre Pubis de Chavannes. This is when Suzanne really got exposed to how the art world worked and she even got back to drawing again. This was her beginning.

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sartle-blog · 6 years

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Renoir's Dancer: The Secret Life of Suzanne Valadon

"Other artists showed what viewers wanted to see. Suzanne showed them what was true.” -Renoir’s Dancer, Catherine Hewitt

Disclaimer: This article contains amazon affiliate links.

Suzanne Valadon was a total badass. Unfortunately, her story has been hidden from the mainstream art history narrative. Not only was she one of the most sought-after models of famous Impressionists like Toulouse-Lautrec and Renoir, but she was also an incredibly successful self-taught artist who never let the patriarchy get her down. With the upcoming release of Catherine Hewitt’s book Renoir’s Dancer:The Secret Life Of Suzanne Valadon, the life of one the greatest female Impressionists won't be so secret anymore.

You might recognize our friend Suzanne from Renoir’s painting Dance at Bougival, which you’ve maybe seen as a poster in a public library or on the “Festival of Living Art” episode of Gilmore Girls. Turns out, as all women are, Suzanne was more than just a pretty face.

Hewitt doesn’t leave out a single detail about Valadon’s life in Renoir’s Dancer. We learn that Suzanne Valadon was born Marie-Clementine to Madeleine Valadon (whose own story is described to us for the first few chapters). After her husband’s death, Madeleine moved her family from the countryside to Paris and became an overworked linen maid to support her children. Marie-Clementine spent her childhood wandering the streets of Montmartre until she was finally enrolled in school. A reckless child with no regard for authority, Marie-Clementine got kicked out quickly and ended up joining the circus.

The Acrobat, Suzanne Valadon, 1912

A rehearsal-gone-wrong left Marie-Clementine injured and forced to find work elsewhere. Now going by the name “Maria,” she decided to become an artists’ model despite the popular (and scandalous!) notion that most models also became their artist’s lovers. To her luck, many up-and-coming artists preferred her as a model due to her round face and full figure. To them, Maria was a perfect embodiment of the true female form.

Suzanne Valadon, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1886

With her natural beauty and infectious charm, Maria quickly became the town babe and had a string of scandalous affairs with numerous painters, including Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Federico Zandomeneghi, Erik Satie, and Miguel Utrillo, a friend of Pablo Picasso. Additionally, she became good friends with other artists like Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, and Edgar Degas. Was there anyone she didn’t know?

Portrait de Suzanne Valadon, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec 1886

The Tub (with Suzanne Valadon), Edgar Degas, 1886

While her ex-beaus ended up with broken hearts (Toulouse-Lautrec was so bitter about the breakup that he angstily painted a lonely Maria slouched over a drink), Maria ended up with new skills (no, not in the bedroom- in the studio!). Plot twist: Maria had been teaching herself to draw since she was six! Her experience as a model gave her the opportunity to receive informal artistic training from her friends and boyfriends. It was Degas who encouraged her to submit her previously hidden work to the Salon de la Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts; that was pretty much the only time she listened to what a man told her to do.

Grandmother and Grandson, Suzanne Valadon, 1894

At this point, Maria changed her name (yes, again!) to Suzanne, a reference to the biblical story about Susanna and the Elders. She proceeded to sign all her works as just “Valadon” so viewers wouldn’t be able to tell the artwork was done by a woman. Her work differed vastly from other female artists like Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt in that she didn’t focus solely on maternal images. The exhibition somewhat pitted her against other female artists who were surprised that a lower-class girl without any formal artistic training could have any success, nevertheless have her work displayed in the Salon.

As all of this was going on, Suzanne had a child. Maurice was a troublesome kid who often broke out into public tantrums and eventually became dangerously alcoholic. Like his mother, Maurice never knew who his father was, though he adopted the last name Utrillo after Miguel Utrillo. Much of the book discusses Suzanne’s strained relationship with Maurice and how it affected her career along with her mental health.

Maurice Utrillo , his Grandmother and His Dog, Suzanne Valadon, 1910

Maurice hardly had any friends save for Andre Utter, an aspiring painter. And just when you think Suzanne Valadon couldn’t get more unpredictable, she goes ahead and falls in love with Utter, a charming man twenty-one years her younger. Poor Maurice was only further troubled by his mother’s new choice of companion, but eventually the three of them - Valadon, Utter, and Utrillo - become a family known as the “Unholy Trinity.”

from left to right: Suzanne Valadon, Andre Utter, Maurice Utrillo

Valadon started focusing solely on painting instead of drawing as her relationship with Utter started, and she even used Utter as a model in some of her paintings like Casting the Net and Adam and Eve. Valadon and Utter remained together until her death in 1938.

Andre Utter and his Dogs, Suzanne Valadon 1932

Catherine Hewitt does a splendid job reimagining the life of Suzanne Valadon in Renoir’s Dancer. Not only does she portray Suzanne and her supporting cast of characters as fully-dimensional people, but she also manages to slip in miniscule details about late 19th century Paris- from the popularity of absinthe to the atmosphere at the famous Le Chat Noir, Hewitt details everything so her readers feel as though they’re right there in Paris with Suzanne. No secret is left unspilled.

Our only concern is that there aren’t enough pictures.

Okay, okay. But some pictures would be nice in a book about art, wouldn’t they? Turns out most of Suzanne Valadon’s paintings aren’t so easily accessible. Here are some of our favorite Suzanne Valadon works introduced to us by Hewitt’s vivid descriptions

The Future Revealed, Suzanne Valadon, 1912

The Dressmaker, Suzanne Valadon, 1914

Black Venus, Suzanne Valadon, 1919

The Abandoned Doll, Suzanne Valadon, 1921

Long story short, Suzanne Valadon was literally the coolest. She wooed every male artist she met without even trying, and better yet, she out painted them all. Naturally, we think everyone should know her story. Check out all the details in Renor’s Dancer: The Secret Life of Suzanne Valadon, available wherever books are sold.

By Alannah Clark

#art news #suzanne valadon #pierre-auguste renoir #renoir's dancer #dance at bougival #impressionism #impressionists #female artists #women in art #french impressionism #art books

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