Berthe Weill

This book offers a rich introduction to the life and work of art dealer Berthe Weill—the risk-taking, rule-breaking facilitator of the modernist art movement in Paris.

This book and the accompanying traveling exhibition survey the groundbreaking career of Berthe Weill (1865–1951), the first female modern art dealer. She championed many fledgling masters of modern art from early in their careers—including Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and Amedeo Modigliani—as well as numerous other talented artists. Examining Weill’s contributions to the history of modernism as a gallerist, a passionate advocate of contemporary art, and a Jew, this book brings to light the remarkable achievements of a singular figure who overcame sexism and anti-Semitism in her quest to promote emerging artists.

The exhibition, co-organized by New York University’s Grey Art Museum, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and the Musée de l’Orangerie, features some eighty artworks that were originally displayed at her gallery during the first four decades of the twentieth century.