Pennsylvania Art Shows- “Henri Rousseau: A Painter’s Secrets” at Barnes Foundation

Henri Rousseau: A Painter’s Secrets at the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia provides a fascinating look at the self-taught painter’s career. Rousseau’s variety of subjects, from portraits and flowers, to the jungles he never experienced in person, were in part a response to what was popular and might sell. But the unique, and sometimes mysterious, paintings also show an artist unafraid to paint the world in his own distinct style.

From the foundation about the exhibition-

Born in 1844, Henri Rousseau became an artist in his forties, while he was working as a customs officer at the toll gates of Paris. From 1886 his paintings were regularly shown at the annual Salon des Indépendants, where anyone who paid the entrance fee could exhibit. He kept clippings of his reviews, good or bad. What mattered to him was being noticed, and though his paintings were mocked by many, by the end of the 19th century he had become a celebrity. Notoriety, however, did not lift his always meager standard of living.

Rousseau taught himself to paint and was celebrated as a “naif,” which at the time meant uneducated, simple, and honest. In reality, he had received a good basic education and was aware of art history and the art of his time. His acquaintances included Paul Gauguin and Pablo Picasso, and he knew successful “academic” artists too. Moreover, he was not always trustworthy; he joined the army in 1863 to avoid going to prison for embezzlement, and in 1908 he was found guilty of passing false checks.

This exhibition sets out to show how strategic Rousseau was in pursuing earnings and recognition as an artist, as well as the intensity with which he committed himself to painting. It also seeks to reveal the surprising complexity of his painting technique. His self-belief overrode his failures, and the impact of his work ensured art market success, but only after his death in 1910. By the mid-1920s, Dr. Albert C. Barnes was buying Rousseau’s paintings for prices comparable to those of Matisse and Picasso.

Below are a few more selections-

This exhibition closes 2/22/26.