A leading figure in French artistic modernity at the turn of the twentieth century, Maurice Denis trained in Paris, entering the Académie Julian in 1888 before attending the École des Beaux-Arts. There he came into contact with Paul Sérusier, Pierre Bonnard, Édouard Vuillard and Ker-Xavier Roussel, with whom he helped to establish the Nabis group, of which he became one of the principal theorists. Known early on as the “Nabi aux belles icônes” (“Nabi of the beautiful icons”), Denis published his celebrated article Définition du néo-traditionnisme in 1890, at the age of just twenty. In it, he formulated one of the foundational principles of modern painting: “Remember that a painting – before being a battle horse, a nude woman, or an anecdote of some sort – is essentially a flat surface covered with colours, put together in a certain order” [1]. Initially influenced by Paul Gauguin’s Synthetism and by Symbolist ideas, Denis gradually developed a visual language characterised by simplified forms, clear spatial construction, and a deliberate return to the classical tradition. Deeply committed to Catholicism, he sought to reconcile decorative modernity with spiritual devotion. In 1919, together with George Desvallières, he founded the Ateliers d’Art sacré, thereby contributing to the revival of religious art in France.
At the same time, Denis’s numerous journeys to Italy provided abundant material for his sketchbooks. In 1907, during a stay in Venice with his first wife, Marthe, he discovered the island of San Francesco del Deserto, home to a small Franciscan community traditionally associated with Saint Francis of Assisi’s visit in 1220. Denis recorded in his Journal: “The most solemn cypresses I have ever seen; a beautiful little Franciscan monastery, standing quite alone in the lagoon, surrounded by an embankment and a garden of cypresses” [2]. A sketchbook from the same year already contains a study for an Annunciation, in which the kneeling Virgin and the Archangel Gabriel are set within an architectural space inspired by the monastery’s cloister. Following his return to the island in April 1922, accompanied by his second wife, Lisbeth, Denis revisited the idea and developed it into a painted composition.
The drawing presented here is the preparatory study for this painting. Denis focuses his attention on the Virgin’s meditative, prayerful pose and the delicacy of her modelling. Unlike the finished painting, which is dominated by broad areas of colour in bold, harmonious combinations, the present work reveals a subtle exploration of volume and flesh tones. The nuanced tonal range of the pastel defines the flesh and shadows with great precision, lending the Virgin a profoundly human presence. Her veil unfolds in a palette of blues, ranging from the deepest tones to luminous celestial highlights, enhancing the contemplative character of the figure. Although conceived as a preparatory study, this sheet fully demonstrates the artist’s technical virtuosity.
In the lower left-hand corner, a small sketch anticipates the composition as a whole. The cloister, arcades and cypresses are already established, while the Angel and the Virgin still occupy positions reversed from those in the final version. The painting enriches this structure with several details that are at once realistic and symbolic, notably the traditional fleurs-de-lis and a swallow in its nest, evoking the Franciscan world of the island. Associated with the return of spring and the renewal of life, the swallow nevertheless remains an unusual motif in the iconography of the Annunciation. An interesting precedent may be found in Fra Angelico’s Annunciation, preserved in the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid (inv. P000015). Denis’s admiration for the Italian Primitives, particularly Giotto and Fra Angelico, and for medieval spirituality aligns him with Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, another major figure in the revival of Christian art in France. The Christian Inspiration, part of the decorative scheme executed by Puvis de Chavannes for the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Lyon, made a profound impression on Denis. In San Francesco del Deserto, he adopts the same white cloister, articulated by the horizontal rhythm of the round-headed arcades, contrasted with the verticality of the cypresses rising against the background.
The Annunciation is a recurring theme in Maurice Denis’s religious thought, appearing as early as the Catholic Mystery of 1889 (Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Musée Maurice Denis, inv. PMD 976.1.48) and revisited in the Annunciation of 1913 (Paris, Musée d’Orsay, inv. RF 1977 138). In 1924, the present drawing was exhibited alongside the painted version at the Galerie Druet, before the canvas was acquired by the industrialist Georges Charbonneaux. He also owned several preparatory cartoons by Denis for the stained-glass windows of Notre-Dame de la Consolation in Le Raincy, conceived during the same period. The Annunciation in this ensemble, set beneath an archway opening onto a cypress-lined avenue, attests to the persistence of this motif, while retaining the kneeling angel on the left, as in the first sketch of 1907. Enchanted by this interpretation of the subject, Charbonneaux approached Denis as early as 1924 to contribute to the decoration of the Church of Saint-Nicaise in Reims, built under the auspices of the Foyer Rémois, of which he was the founder. The Annunciation executed by the artist for the apsidal recess of the north chapel further develops the ideas explored at San Francesco del Deserto: the figure of the angel, in particular, bears a striking resemblance to that in the 1923 canvas.
A pivotal stage in the development of Maurice Denis’s Marian iconography, the present sheet allows us to trace the genesis of a composition that would undergo several major developments throughout the artist’s career. Originally conceived as an intimate meditation, it marks the beginning of a line of enquiry that would find its fullest expression in the large-scale religious schemes he executed in the years that followed.
We are grateful to Fabienne Stahl, who has confirmed the authenticity of this work and kindly informed us that it is recorded in the Maurice Denis Archives under no. 923.1001, Annunciation (San Francesco del Deserto), 1923.
D.G.
