French artist Yvonne Canu was transfixed by Pointillism, a technique that was pioneered in the 19th century by Georges Seurat, and devoted her career to mastering it. Over half a century after Seurat’s death, Canu gravitated towards French Postimpressionism and was pivotal in carrying Pointillism into the modern era.
Born in Morocco, Canu studied in Paris at the École des Arts Decoratifs until the start of WWII. Following the war, she met French painter Élisée Maclet and French-Japanese artist Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita who were influential in her exploration of Impressionist art. She also studied Cubism at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière alongside prolific French artist Ossip Zadkine.
Seeing Seurat’s masterpiece A Sunday on La Grande Jatte ultimately set Canu on a path to understand the complexities of his practice. She investigated Seurat’s use of complementary color and studied the work of French chemist Michel Eugène Chevreul, who in the 19th century worked as the director of the famous Parisian tapestry factory, Gobelins Manufactory. In her work, she experimented with dabbing colors in such a way as to allow the viewer to perceive the greater tableau from afar.
Through this approach, Canu championed a colorful approach to water scenes including seascapes, harbors and rivers. Critics have drawn comparisons between Canu’s work and other 20th-century French artists who expanded on the innovative artistic ideas established in the 19th century.
Find original Yvonne Canu paintings and wall decorations on 1stDibs.
$24,632
'Barques a St. Florent Corse' . Boats at Saint Florent, Corsica. Pointillism
By Yvonne Canu
Located in St. Albans, GB
Yvonne Canu 1921 – 2008 Canvas Size: 18 x 21.5 (46 x 55cm) Outside Frame Size: 25.5 x 29" (65 x 74cm) Yvonne Canu is currently one of the most sought after contemporary pointillis...
Oil
$17,078Sale Price|20% Off
'La Fontaine de Neptune a Paris' - The Fountain of Neptune in Paris Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in St. Albans, GB
Yvonne Canu 1921 – 2008 Signed bottom right and signed, titled and numbered 967 on the reverse Canvas Size: 22 x 18" (55 x 46cm) Outside Frame Size: 28 x 24" (70 x 60cm) Yvonne Ca...
Oil
Les Arbres Oil Painting, Pointillist Style, Framed, 20th Century
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New York, NY
Signed lower right: Canu Provenance: Private Collection, US Yvonne Canu was influenced by the Pointillists school and very strongly so by Georges Seurat and by Sunday Afternoon on ...
Oil, Canvas
$25,543
Repos dans un champs de coquelicots - Pointillist Landscape Oil by Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed pointillist oil on panel figures in landscape by French neo-impressionist painter Yvonne Canu. This stunning piece depicts a couple resting under a parasol in a field of wildf...
Oil, Board
$51,693
La Conciergerie - Neo Impressionist Pointillist Riverscape Oil by Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed pointillist oil on canvas landscape by French Neo-Impressionist painter Yvonne Canu. The work depicts a view of revellers on a boat travelling along the River Seine in Paris, ...
Canvas, Oil
Preparations for the Regattas by Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French Preparations for the Regattas (Préparations aux Régates) Signed "Canu" (lower right) Titled "Préparations aux Régates" (en verso) Oil on canvas A lum...
Canvas, Oil
Price Upon Request
Le Marche a Grimaud
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New York, NY
Yvonne Canu (born 1930) is a French artist renowned for her abstract and geometric painting, often focusing on the interaction between color, form, and light. She emerged in the mid-...
Oil
$116,319
H 18.23 in W 25.6 in
Paris, Avenue du bois by Jean Dufy - Oil painting, Figurative art, City scene
By Jean Dufy
Located in London, GB
*PLEASE NOTE UK BUYERS WILL ONLY PAY 5% VAT ON THIS PURCHASE. Once an order is placed we will arrange the VAT of 20% to be reduced to 5% Paris, Avenue du bois by Jean Dufy (1888-196...
Canvas, Oil
$5,500
H 99 in W 98.5 in D 0.25 in
A Figurative Pointillist Painting after Georges Seurat’s “Sunday Afternoon…”
Located in San Francisco, CA
On offer is a monumental pointillism painting, a reinterpretation of “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” created a century earlier by French painter George Seurat,...
Canvas, Oil
$752
H 10.24 in W 13.78 in
Zevgolatio - Pointillist Oil on Canvas Modernist Greece Painting
Located in Sevenoaks, GB
A beautiful pointillist oil on canvas depicting figures waiting for a train at Zevgolatio, Greece. Exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 1987. Original exhibition label on the reverse. Artist: Malcolm John Hitchcock (1929–1998) Title: Zevgolatio Medium: Oil on canvas Size: 26cm x 35cm including frame Malcolm John Hitchcock (1929–1998) was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire. He studied at Andover School of Art, then did “a variety of work to keep the wolf from the door,” becoming a full-time artist in mid-1980s. His main works were Pointillist railway paintings...
Oil
$2,652Sale Price|20% Off
H 21.26 in W 32.68 in
Summer Day on the West Coast of Sweden by Swedish Impressionist Alfred Wahlberg
Located in Stockholm, SE
Alfred Wahlberg was a distinguished Swedish landscape painter whose career spanned Germany, France, and Sweden. During his early years, he resided in D...
Canvas, Oil
$1,350
H 16 in W 20 in D 0.13 in
"Salinas Valley Farm" - Fauvist Landscape in Oil on Artist's Board
Located in Soquel, CA
"Salinas Valley Farm" - Fauvist Landscape in Oil on Artist's Board Bright and saturated landscape by Will H. Light (American, 1926-2004). The viewer stands at the edge of a farm, lo...
Canvas, Oil, Illustration Board
$3,500
H 29.5 in W 35.5 in D 2.5 in
“Autumn Landscape, c. 1910” American Impressionist New England Fall Oil Signed
Located in Yardley, PA
Warm air seems to move through this scene as the eye wanders along a gentle swale dotted with granite boulders, low stone walls and scrubby autumn color. A ribbon of meadow pulls us ...
Canvas, Oil
Venise - Huile sur toile, 50x100 cm., encadré
By Serge Mendjisky
Located in Nice, FR
Très belle vue de Venise. Huile sur toile par Serge Mendjisky daté 1980. Dimensions avec le cadre: 72x122 cm. Serge Mendjisky est ne en 1929 et mort e...
Oil
$2,302Sale Price|30% Off
H 18.71 in W 25.6 in
Harvest Time by Hjalmar Sandberg, Swedish Artist, Oil on Canvas, Signed, 1876
Located in Stockholm, SE
Hjalmar Sandberg (1847-1888) Sweden Harvest Time, 1876 oil on canvas canvas size 14.96 x 18.11 inches (38 x 46 cm) frame 18.70 x 25.59 inches (47.5 ...
Canvas, Oil
$4,500
H 36.5 in W 31 in D 3.5 in
"Village Provençal " Pointillistic Colorful Landscape Oil Painting on Canvas
By Lucia Fortuny
Located in New York, NY
A large Mid-20th Century oil painting depicting a beautiful landscape on a sunny day of the Village Provençal in France. This piece has a strong presence with bold brushwork and heav...
Canvas, Oil
$549
H 14.5 in W 17.25 in D 0.75 in
Mid Century Figurative Seascape with Sailboats
By Henryk Dzienczarski
Located in Soquel, CA
Mid-century figurative seascape with boats by Henryk Dzienczarski, (Poland, b-1917). Signed "H. Dzienczarski" lower right. Displayed in a wood fra...
Oil, Illustration Board
$2,800Sale Price|43% Off
H 28 in W 38 in D 2 in
Russian/Canadian Modernist Signed Fauvist Pointillist Landscape Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Vintage modernist landscape painting. Oil on canvas, circa 1957. Signed "Olga" verso. Displayed in a modern frame. Image size, 36"L x 26"H.
Canvas, Oil
$2,850
H 25.5 in W 27.5 in D 2.25 in
"Washington Park, New York City" Monument City Oil Painting on Canvas Framed
By Robert Waltsak
Located in New York, NY
A wonderful impressionist summer street scene of Washington Square Park in New York City. Waltsak has portrayed this piece in a most intimate, yet energetic way, and has packed so mu...
Oil, Canvas
Saint-Tropez by Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French Saint-Tropez Signed "Canu" (lower right) Titled "Saint-Tropez" (en verso) Oil on canvas An idyllic seaside cityscape of Yvonne Canu's beloved Saint-T...
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 32.5 in W 37.5 in D 1.33 in
Bélon, le port à marée basse by Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French Bélon, le port à marée basse (Bélon, The Port at Low Tide) Signed "Canu" (lower right) Oil on canvas This original oil on canvas by Yvonne Canu capt...
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 25.5 in W 29 in D 3 in
'Marché de Provence - A Market in Provence' Signed oil painting on canvas
By Yvonne Canu
Located in St. Albans, GB
Yvonne Canu 1921 – 2008 Signed bottom right and signed, titled and numbered 300 on the reverse Canvas Size: 21 x 25" (54 x 65cm) Outside Frame Size: 29 x 33" (74 x 85cm) Yvonne Ca...
Oil
Marseille By Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French Marseille Signed "CANU" on lower left Oil on canvas The picturesque French Riviera is presented in French Post-Impressionist Yvonne Canu's signature ...
Oil, Canvas
Saint-Tropez, Le Port By Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French Saint-Tropez, le port Signed "CANU" (lower right) Oil on canvas The peaceful port of Saint-Tropez is captured in serene detail in this extraordinary...
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 20.13 in W 25.25 in D 1.38 in
Fishing Boats In St. Tropez By Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French Fishing Boats in St. Tropez Signed "CANU" on lower right boat Oil on canvas The picturesque French Riviera is presented in French Post-Impressionist ...
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 29 in W 37 in
Saint Tropez au soleil couchant - Pointillist Landscape Oil by Yvonne Canu
By Yvonne Canu
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed and titled pointillist oil on cavas landscape by French painter Yvonne Canu. This stunning piece depicts boats moored at a harbour in Saint Tropez as the sun sets. There is a ...
Canvas, Oil
St. Tropez
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French St. Tropez Signed "Canu" (lower right) Signed and titled "St. Tropez / y. Canu" (en verso) Oil on canvas The picturesque French Riviera is presented ...
Canvas, Oil
Douarnenez
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
Yvonne Canu 1921-2008 French Douarnenez Signed "Canu" (lower right) Signed and titled "Douarnenez / y. Canu" (en verso) Oil on canvas A picturesque harbor in the French town of Douarnenez is the subject of this extraordinary oil on canvas by the French Post-Impressionist Yvonne Canu. The 20th-century painter's pointillist creations are distinctly modern, rendered with painstakingly precise dots of pure color that brilliantly blend together to form a cohesive work of art. This oil exemplifies her distinctive style, which displays the influence of the Post-Impressionist icon Georges Seurat in both its technique and choice of subject - though this work displays a more vibrant color palette, it is reminiscent of Seurat's Entrance to the Port of Honfleur. Canu's use of minuscule points of pigment and bright colors results in this stunning scene full of light and motion. Born in Morocco in 1921, Yvonne Canu traveled to Paris to study at the reputable École des Arts Decoratifs. Following the First World War, she entered the circle of the French-Japanese painter...
Canvas, Oil
14 juillet, Montmartre (July 14, Montmartre)
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
A crowd celebrates Bastille Day in the Montmartre arrondissement of Paris in this brilliantly lit and vibrantly colored oil on canvas by the French Post-Impressionist Yvonne Canu. The 20th-century painter's pointillist creations are distinctly modern, rendered with painstakingly precise dots of pure color that brilliantly blend together to form a cohesive work of art. This oil exemplifies her distinctive style, which displays the influence of the Post-Impressionist icon Georges Seurat in both its technique and choice of subject — a modern leisure scene. Canu's use of minuscule points of pigment and bright colors results in this stunning scene full of vitality and light. Born in Morocco in 1921, Yvonne Canu traveled to Paris to study at the reputable École des Arts Decoratifs. Following the First World War, she entered the circle of the French-Japanese painter...
Canvas, Oil
Le Port de Collioure
By Yvonne Canu
Located in New Orleans, LA
The port of the southern French town of Collioure is the subject of this vibrant oil on canvas by the French Post-Impressionist Yvonne Canu. The 20th-century painter's pointillist cr...
Canvas, Oil
Vue du Port, St Tropez
By Yvonne Canu
Located in Wiscasett, ME
Oil on canvas, signed lower right. Canvas measurement: 21" x 29" and with frame measures 30" x 39". Provenance: Purchased from Hilde Gerst Gallery in NYC in 1990, Private Collection...
Oil