Edouard VuillardFrench, 1868–1940At the Café
Can I see it?
Not on view at present
Where is “At the Café” now? Collection: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland. Not on view at present. Checked September 29, 2026.
Cleveland, United States
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the painting
This scene of two women in a Parisian café has a hushed atmosphere that is heightened by the warm palette and glow of gaslight. Édouard Vuillard and Félix Vallotton were close friends and painted together in the 1890s, but Vuillard’s quiet café and Vallotton’s riotous Bistro (2020.114) could not be more different in mood.
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Details
- Accession number
- 1958.57
In the catalog
Sources
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Image: The Cleveland Museum of Art — Museum open access
In the life of Edouard Vuillard
The whole life1886–1927 · Workplace
Paris
December 1895
Shown at the opening of Bing’s Maison de l’Art Nouveau
Displayed at the opening of Bing’s gallery in December 1895 are his series of decorative porcelain plates, with women in modern dress immersed in floral designs, his design for the Tiffany window and the decorative panels made for the Natansons.
late 1890s
A long relationship with Misia Natanson
In the late 1890s begins his long relationship with Misia Natanson, wife of his patron Thadée: he helps her decorate the Natansons’ apartment, paints her often in his decorative panels and regularly accompanies the couple to their country house. Vuillard never married, but women greatly shaped his life and work.
1899 · Workplace
London
1900
The Nabis part ways and Vuillard’s manner changes
After their exhibition of 1900 the Nabis go their separate ways; Vuillard abandons the close, dark interiors, paints more outdoors in natural light and gradually returns to naturalism, with lighter, deeper interiors and clearer faces.
1900
Meets Lucy Hessel
He meets Lucy Hessel, the wife of a Swiss art dealer, who becomes his new muse: each year she travels with him to Normandy from July to September, advises him, and stays with him until the end of his life despite many rivals and dramatic scenes.
