Rousseau’s The Dream Cross Stitch Pattern

Description

The Dream Cross Stitch Pattern is a replica of Henri Rousseau’s famous 1910 oil painting ‘Le Rêve’. The painting is currently on display at the The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), in New York USA.

It was Rousseau’s very last painting and created the year he died. The Dream was in every respect his crowning achievement, and was met with acclaim by the avant-garde artists — many of whom had previously ridiculed his work.

A wonderful cross stitch project for anyone wanting to reproduce a French masterpiece — we are especially proud of this chart and its exotic depiction of a woman alone (and naked) in a surreal jungle of wild cats, tropical snakes, and fantastical flowers.

The Project

We’ve tried to be as true as possible to the original painting, but felt it best to leave out the faint artist signature from the bottom right corner. We even managed the faint (but eerie) stare of the snake charmer.

Be warned though, The Dream cross stitch pattern this is massive (99.8cm x 67.3cm) and needs 179 different thread colours. But do remember, Rousseau’s original painting is nearly 3 metres wide and 2 metres high.

NOTE: we do our best to use symbols that differentiate on the page, but if you find a symbol just isn’t working for you please get in touch. We’ll be happy to adjust the chart. 

PS: look for an extra chart in your download pack that has been specially formatted for Pattern Keeper App. We recommend using PK for big projects like this.

The Painting

Here is a little more about the painting from the MoMA website:

“The woman asleep on the couch is dreaming she has been transported into the forest, listening to the sounds from the instrument of the enchanter,” Rousseau wrote of this enigmatic painting. He sought to explain his insertion of a musician and a reclining female nude into a moonlit jungle full of exotic foliage and wildlife inspired by his visits to Paris’s Jardin des Plantes, a combined botanical garden and zoo. The self-taught painter was a crucial precedent for Surrealist artists like Salvador Dalí and René Magritte, who also relied on incongruous combinations and dream imagery to create mysterious, unforgettable pictures.”

MoMA

The Artist

Henri Rousseau lived between 1844 and 1910 and never received formal training as a painter. Much of his work was ridiculed during his lifetime until he was championed by Pablo Picasso toward the end of his life. He is famous for his unusual jungle scenes and exotic subject matter — look for more of them here in the store.

Additional information