Overview

• The film opened in German cinemas on June 5, bringing Provost’s nuanced portrait of Bonnard and his muse to audiences.
• Provost depicts Pierre Bonnard and Marthe de Méligny as artistic equals, following their bond from a chance Paris encounter to marriage three decades later.
• Marthe’s adoption of a false aristocratic identity and Bonnard’s affairs—including a failed ménage à trois with an American student—drive the emotional turmoil that sparks her own creativity.
• Spurred by abandonment and asthma-driven isolation, Marthe takes up painting and achieves a surprise success with her first exhibition, yet remains overshadowed by Bonnard’s reputation.
• Critics praise the film’s sensuous, color-infused cinematography that echoes Bonnard’s post-impressionist palette, and some note that his distinctive artistic techniques receive less examination.