Elles, les élèves de Jean-Jacques Henner: the Jean-Jacques Henner Museum's exhibition for women

Women weren't allowed to attend theoretical classes at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts until 1897, and weren't allowed access to studios until 1900. Yet many women also wanted to become artists, to master painting, sculpture, drawing... So some people decided to offer their own courses for these women artists.

The Musée Jean-Jacques Henner is devoting an exhibition to these female artists, and especially to those who learned their art alongside Jean-Jacques Henner. From November 28, 2024 to April 28, 2025, come and discover the new exhibition"Elles, les élèves de Jean-Jacques Henner".

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The exhibition features over 80 paintings, photographs, drawings and letters that tell the story of this special period, when women fought for their right to learn and create.

In the 19th century, women could not be formally trained as artists. To get around this prohibition, several private workshops opened their doors. In 1974, Jean-Jacques Henner and his friend Carolus-Duran decided to set up their own workshop for women wishing to learn the art of painting. It was in this class that creators such as Dorothy Tennant, Louise Abbéma, Madeleine Smith, Fanny Fleury and Ottilie W. Roederstein.

Jean-Jacques Henner also opened his personal studio to several of his pupils, who also became important friends and colleagues. This exhibition highlights 17 women artists - among the 150 who studied with Henner - who benefited from the painter's teaching at the end of the 19th century.

Thanks to numerous archives, letters, diaries, photographs and notebooks, the Musée Jean-Jacques Henner has been able to reconstruct this period in the artist's life, in the service of women. Visitors can discover Henner the art teacher, and admire the works of women artists, and how they were able to train and work in a society that still closed many doors to them.

It's an opportunity for visitors to (re)discover important female artists, sometimes unjustly forgotten. In the paintings of these painters, we can see the influence of the teacher, who played an important role in bringing these women to the fore.