Born near Paris, Bonnard studied law, but by the late 1880s had given this up for painting. In 1887 he met the artists Edouard Vuillard, Maurice Denis and Paul Sérusier. Taking their inspiration from Gauguin, in 1888 they formed the Nabis group (the name derives from the Hebrew word for 'Prophets'). In 1912 Bonnard bought a house in Vernonnet, a village on the Seine, north west of Paris. He spent most of his time there until 1925, when he moved to the south of France, but still returned to Vernonnet frequently. Bonnard's paintings are characterised by a great richness of colour and sense of warmth. As well as landscapes and domestic, interior scenes, Bonnard frequently painted his wife, naked in her bath or bedroom.
A broad-ranging term covering the variety of painting styles that emerged in the wake of Impressionism in Europe, particularly in France. The most prominent artists to arise from the group are Georges Seurat, Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin.