Curatorial Narrative In the midst of late 19th-century Paris, Flix Vallotton’s “Les rassemblements” (1895) emerges as a seminal work within the nascent Art Deco movement. The artist’s decision to render his subject in black and white, employing a linear brushwork that echoes the precision of modernist design, underscores the tension between representation and abstraction. By divorcing his figurative subjects from the rich chromatic palette typical of his contemporaries, Vallotton imbues his work with an atmospheric weight that seems almost cinematic in its ability to evoke mood without explicit narrative.When enlarged to 65×44 inches, “Les rassemblements” exhibits a spatial rhythm that oscillates between intimacy and expansiveness. The composition’s vertical axis, anchored by the central figures, establishes a visual hierarchy that draws the viewer’s gaze upward, thereby emphasizing the architectural potential of the artwork as a de