Maurice Denis

Artist and art theorist, born in Grandville, W France. One of the original group of Symbolist painters, Les Nabis, he wrote several influential critical works, and in 1919 helped to found the Studios of Sacred Art, devoted to the revival of religious painting. Perhaps his most famous picture is ‘Hommage à Cézanne’ (1900, Paris).

Maurice Denis (November 25, 1870 – November 1943) was a French painter and writer and a member of the Symbolist and Les Nabis movements.

In his famous proposal for the definition of painting, he stated:

"Remember that a picture, before being a battle horse, a nude, an anecdote or whatnot, is essentially a flat surface covered with colors assembled in a certain order."

Denis died in Paris of injuries resulting from an automobile accident in November 1943.