French painting today

CHAGALL Marc Bo r n o n t he 7th July, 1887, a t Witebsk (Russia). First a t t ended the school of Fine Arts of St. Petersburg, t h e n came t o Paris i n 1910, studied i n private academies, lived i n L a Ruche , associated wi t h critics a n d artists t h e n i n fame a n d worked wi t h fierce individuality. F r om 1914 t o 1922 h e stayed i n Russia a n d t h e n r e t u r n e d t o France. F r om 1939 t o 1947 h e lived i n t he Un i t e d States. I n 1947 large retrospective exhibition a t t he Na t i ona l Mo d e r n A r t Mu s e um in Paris. I n 1948 won the international prize of engraving a t the Biennial Exhibition of Venice. Ha s ma d e theatre settings a n d costumes, also illustrated the Bible, a n d L a Fontaine's fables wi t h etchings. T h e secret of his composition a n d colcurs lies i n the illogical n a t u r e of d r e am a n d feeling, b u t his vision enlarges i n t o a universal lyricism, a belief i n the fraternity of m a n a n d nature, expressed i n a very personal way. 2 0 T r o u g h wi t h two pigs (L'Auge 0.63 x 0.50 (gouache) 2 1 T h e black glove ( L e Gan t Noir) 1.12 x 0.81 a u x d e u x cochons) 1948 M. Marcel Kapférer CHAPELAIN-MIDY Roger Bo r n o n the 24th August, 1904, i n Paris, of a family originating f r om the Beauce Plain. After his secondary studies h e attended the Montparnasse Academies. In 1930 decorated one o f t he Paris T o w n Halls. W o n the prize of t he Muses which enabled h i m to travel i n Eu r o p e a n d Morocco. I n 1937 decorated the foyer of t he Palais de Chaillot theatre a n d t h e amphitheatre o f t h e I n s t i t u t Agronomique. I n 1938 wo n the Carnegie Prize i n Pittsburg. I n 1939 travelled t o the West Indies a n d South America. I n 1948 stayed i n Egypt. I n 1952 ma d e t he settings for Rame a u ' s opera L e s I n d e s Galantes. Always searching for equilibrium and harmony, Chapelain is considered t o b e a t r ue classicist. 2 2 Still life wi t h owl (Na t u r e morte a la Ghouette) 0.73 x 1.00 CHASTEL Andre' Bo r n o n the 25th o f March, 1897, i n Paris, of a bourgeois family. After his secondary studies h e a t t ended t he school of Fine Arts a n d the Ra n s o n and J u l i a n Academies. Chastel t h e n led a n artistic a n d i nd e p e nd e n t life; h e was a great admirer of the plastic school for their love of exact construction, a n d of t h e exotic o r primitive arts. I n 1932 exhibited a t Georges Bernheim's and received t he G r a n d P r i x d e la Peinture. I n 1937 decorated the To u r i s t s t and at t h e I n t e r na t i ona l Exhibition. Decorated the Palace o f t h e League o f Nations in Geneva, a n d the Post Office i n Sanary. F r om 1930 t o 1949 exhibited a t Jeanne Castel's, P a u l Guillaume's, a t t h e Pe t i t Palais, a t the Carnegie Foundation, a t the Venice biennial exhibition, a t t he Maeght Gallery, a n d i n t he Salons. Chastel is considering pa i n t i ng mo r e a n d mo r e as a form o f expression which is a n e n d in itself. 2 3 Evening (La Veillée) 1.65 x 1.90 CHESNAY Denise Bo r n i n 1923 a t Versailles. Started studying p a i n t i ng wh e n 13 i n Algiers. Has b e e n working alone since t h e age o f 18. Participated i n t h e g r oup exhibitions o f t h e Ma egh t Gallery. Exh i b i t ed a t the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles (1947-1951), a t the Salon de Ma i (1950-1951-1952) a n d i n the Paris Galleries (Lydia Conti, Beaune) a n d i n t he Algiers Gallery. T h e p r ob l em of the divorce between the concrete reality a n d the abstract simply does n o t exist for Denise Chesnay. Any Teal object is a sign which she interprets wi t h s ha r p lines a n d generous splashes of paint. 2 4 T h e T r e e (L'Arbre) 1951 1.16 x 0.89 COUTAUD Lucien Bo r n 13th December, 1904, a t Meynes (Gard) o f a family o f cabinet makers. After a t t end i ng t he Ecole des Beaux-Arts a t Nimes h e frequented t he free Academies of Montparnasse. I n 1928 h e ma d e his artistic d e b u t i n Paris. A long stay i n Italy led t o his discovering Piero della Francesca. Fo r sixteen years he worked alone parallel t o the surrealist movement. I n 1937 h e decorated the Palace of Discovery, t he Deaf a n d D u m b Institute a n d the Faculty of Pharmacy. H e painted tapestry cartoons for the Gohelins factory, Ma d ame Cuttoli a n d the Compagnie des Arts Français (Adnet). H e also does scenery a n d costumes for the Atelier a n d Vi eux Colombier theatres a n d t he Comédie Française. I n 1945 h e founded the Salon d e Ma i a n d exhibited i n Brussels. I n 1948 h e published his first etchings wi t h Maeght. H e reads R imb a u d , Lau t r é amon t , Raymond Roussel a n d creates a n eerie a n d cruel world, peopled by lacerated puppets. 2 5 Memories (Souvenir) 0.81 x 1.30 DERAIN Andre' Bo r n a t Ch a t c u (Seine), 10th J un e , 1880. H i s father was a pastrycook who intended h i m t o b e a n engineer. H e began to study for the Ecole Polytechnique b u t started t o p a i n t a t t h e age of 15. I n 1899 h e a t t ended the Académie Carrière where h e me t Matisse a n d Vlaminck, w h o was older t h a n h i m a n d also lived at Chatou. A t the beginning of the twentieth century h e was p a i n t i ng landscapes n e a r Chatou, o n the outskirts of Paris, a t Pecq, a t Saint-Germain-en-Laye, and a t Carrières Saint Denis. After the period o f "fauve" landscapes h e t u r n e d t o a constructive stylisation. T h e year 1912 was his Gothic period. After t h e wa r he pa i n t ed nume r ou s landscapes i n the South of France, t h e n portraits a n d nudes. H e wo n the Carnegie Found a t i on Prize wi t h L a Chasse. H e has don e many theatre settings, has t aken p a r t i n the Biennials a t Venice, a n d has h a d many exhibitions abroad. I n March, 1949, h e exhibited some nudes, which are among his best works, a t t he Galerie d e Bern. 2 6 T h e forest ( La Forêt) 1928 0.43 x 0.65 DESNOYER François Musée National d ' Ar t Moderne Bo r n 30th September, 1891, a t Mo n t a u b a n i n Languedoc, called " r ed" o n account of the colour of t he soil. Like Andre' Lhote, h e first received lessons i n sculpture from Bourdelle a t Mon t a ub a n . H e was a p u p i l a t the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs where h e later taught. A friend of Ma r que t , Gromaire, Villon, Goerg, Walch a n d Lotiron, h e often exhibits with them. I n 1924 h e wo n the G r a n d Prix Blumenthal for French t hough t a n d art, a n d i n 1937 the Go l d Meda l of the International Exhibition. Hi s latest exhibitions have been a t Marcel Guiot's. Fauvism with its contrast of pu r e tones, a n d cubism which divides objects into their geometric elements, b o t h mingle i n Desnoyer's work. Desnoyer melts these [ 1 6 ] ['7]