PAR AVION
Par Avion is a humorous collection of illustrated cartoons about New York City and its residents by the French cartoonist Jean-Jacques Sempé. [1, 2]
Overview
- Author: Jean-Jacques Sempé (creator of Le Petit Nicolas).
- Publication Year: Originally published in French in 1989, with an English edition following in 1991.
- Content: Features over 60 pen-and-ink and watercolor drawings.
If you'd like, I can:
- Tell you more about Sempé's style and other famous works
- Help you find where to buy a copy of the book
- Share details about his work with The New Yorker
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The color blue holds a unique and powerful significance in the works of Paul Cézanne, Pierre Bonnard, and Raoul Dufy, three masters of modern French painting who used it to redefine how we see light, shadow, and space.
While Paul Cézanne used blue structurally to create depth, Pierre Bonnard used it to capture the shimmering quality of memory and light, and Raoul Dufy made blue his absolute signature color to express pure joy. [1, 2, 3]
🎨 Raoul Dufy: Blue as the Ultimate Color
- What it means: Dufy pointed out that when you darken yellow it turns black, and when you dilute red it becomes pink—but blue always stays blue. [1, 2]
- How he used it: He covered huge areas of his canvas in glowing shades of azure, indigo, and ultramarine to paint the sky and the Mediterranean Sea. [1]
🍏 Paul Cézanne: Blue as Structure and Shadow
- What it means: Instead of using black or gray to paint shadows, Cézanne realized that shadows in nature are actually filled with cool colors, especially blue.
- How he used it: He used deep blue outlines around everyday objects like apples, vases, and mountains. In masterpieces like his paintings of Mont Sainte-Victoire, blue patches blend the land directly into the sky. [1]
- The Technique: Cézanne used blue to create "cool" areas that look like they are pushing back into the distance, while warm colors (like red and yellow) pop forward. This trick allowed him to build 3D shapes without using traditional shading.
☀️ Pierre Bonnard: Blue as Emotional Light
Pierre Bonnard was a master of "Intimism" (painting quiet, indoor domestic scenes) and was obsessed with how light transforms a room.
- What it means: For Bonnard, blue was a tool to capture the fleeting, vibrating feeling of light coming through a window or reflecting off water.
- How he used it: He loved contrasting bright, fiery oranges and yellows with cool, deep blues. He frequently painted his wife, Marthe, in the bathtub, turning the bathroom water and tiles into a magical grid of shimmering purples and blues.
- The Technique: Bonnard did not paint what he saw in real-time; he painted from memory. He used layers of blue to create a dreamy, floating atmosphere where walls, mirrors, and people all melt into one glowing tapestry.
Summary Comparison
| Artist | How They Used Blue | What It Represented |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Cézanne | Solid outlines and structural shadows | Depth, distance, and 3D shape |
| Pierre Bonnard | Shimmering layers mixed with warm sunlight | Memory, mood, and vibrating light |
| Raoul Dufy | Wide, joyful washes of bright azure and ultramarine | Pure atmosphere, energy, and joie de vivre (joy of life) |
Would you like to explore a specific painting by one of these three artists to see exactly how they mixed their blues, or learn about the chemical pigments they used?
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桑貝Sempe (插畫者1932~2022)。 重讀Mr. Summer's Story
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