Werner von Hausen and Emile Bernard

Exploring the Fragmentary Sources of von Hausen’s Antimodernism

Abstract

Werner von Hausen met Emile Bernard in Cairo in 1895, in Laren (Netherlands) in 1906, and again in Paris in 1906–1908. Evidence of these encounters is found in portraits, press articles and in the artists’ correspondence. These scattered fragments contain hitherto unknown biographical elements and make it possible to reconstruct a major influence on the artistic production and thought of the Finnish painter. Werner von Hausen thus turns out to be a protagonist of Antimodernism in Finland, a classical painter and author of memoirs, reviews and a manifesto defending a vision of art that did not conform to the expectations of his time.