Henri Rousseau said: My only master is nature.The simple, bold paintings of jungles, exotic flora and fauna by a retired customs official who began painting at almost 50 were initially mocked, but went on to receive the praise of Picasso, the Surrealists and many others.

The Roar of the Tiger

The Dreamlike Jungles of Rousseau

Henri Rousseau (1844-1910) was a Paris customs clerk who dreamed of becoming a famous artist. At the age of 49, he decided to give it a try. At first, Rousseau's cheerful and daring paintings depicting jungles and exotic flora and fauna were called childish and simplistic, but his unique and tenacious style was soon recognised. From 1886 he exhibited his work regularly at the prestigious Salon des Indépendants in Paris, and in 1908 he attended a legendary banquet in his honour hosted by Picasso.
Although famous for his tropical landscapes, Rousseau never actually left France and drew his inspiration from books and magazines, as well as visits to natural history museums and anecdotes from acquaintances returning from military campaigns. In his oil on canvas works he often depicted vivid scenes with a vibrant colour palette, as well as a certain languid, exuberant sensuality of which the nude of the jungle composition The Dream is a clear example.
Today, the myth of Rousseau occupies a prominent place in the history of art and he is compared to post-Impressionist masters such as Cézanne, Matisse and Gauguin. In this indispensable introduction by TASCHEN we explore the artist's late birth and his legacy as an unexpected hero of modernism.

About the author

Cornelia Stabenow was born in Bamberg (Germany) and wrote her doctoral thesis on Rousseau's jungle paintings. She worked as an art historian from 1982 until her death in 1990.

Publisher: Taschen