Under the impulsion of Paul Sérusier and Maurice Denis' new ideas about the very nature of painting (Remember that a picture, before being a battle horse, a female nude or some sort of anecdote, is essentially a flat surface covered with colors assembled in a certain order. - as goes the famous Maurice Denis quote).
Paul-Elie Ranson and Ker-Xavier Roussel will join the Nabis from the very start.
Theirs will be an art inspired by japanese Ukiyo-E prints, by decoration, in which they will abandon perspective, flatten the pictorial surface, and abstract the figures. Imitation is abandoned in favour of aesthetics. Theater, in particular Giugnols, a form of popular street theater, will become important subject matters.
The "Guignol Anatole" by Paul-Elie Ranson, made in the heyday of the Nabis, is one such example. In it, Ranson creates a scene of popular entertainment in which perspective and naturalism are abandoned. "Moïse sauvé des eaux" by Roussel on the other hand is an exaple of a less synthetic, inspired by the great Italian décors and post-impressionistic light scene. In it, Roussel demonstrates his absolute mastery of pastel.
