French painting today

t he Railway a n d Airways stands (International Exh i b i t i on o f Paris). Since the L i be r a t i on of France has been participating i n all the large exhibitions o f French paintings abroad. Exhibited i n Paris i n the Rene' Dr ou i n , Billiet-Caputo, and France Galleries. I n 1949, Lithographs on the themes o f Easter a t the Jeanne Buche r Gallery. I n 1951 participated i n t he exhibition o f religious a r t a t the Na t i on a l Mu s e um of Mod e r n Art. Says the artist himself: " I wish t o express more a n d mo r e t he i n n e r prayer of ma n , reach the sacred arts. My subjects are generally a religious a n d cosmic impression of m a n confronting the world. In any case my canvases are t o b e the witnesses of something felt by the heart, and n o t a n imitation of something seen by the eye." 68 La t e October (Fin octobre) 1948 Galerie d e France 1.69 x 0.60 69 T h e sleeping h a r b o u r (Port endormi) 1951 Galerie d e France 1.62 x 0.97 M A R C H A N D Andre' Bo r n o n t he 10th of February, 1907, a t Aix-en-Provence, of a Provençal mother a n d a Flemish father wh o was a teacher of mathematics. Secondary studies a t Aix. Pa i n t e d from the age of 12. Acquired his training t h r ough his association with t h e Masters of the Louvre Museum, a n d was influenced by the g r oup of "les fauves." Ma d e several trips i n Europe. Ma r ch and composed tapestry cartoons for Adnet, settings a n d costumes for Darius Milhaud's Suite Provençale a n d for Mireille a t the Comic Opera. Ha s participated i n all the official exhibitions of F r ench p a i n t i ng abroad. I n 1948 comprehensive exhibition a t the Kunsthaus of Zurich. Ma r c h a nd tries to give his paintings the richness o f substance a n d the expressive stylisation of the Primitive a n d Far-Eastern Arts. 7 0 Spring ( Le Printemps) 1948 1.30 x 1.95 MAS SON Andre' Bo r n a t Balagny (Oise) o n the 4 t h of January, 1896. Hi s first landscapes showed Derain's influence. T h e n , from 1924 t o 1928, his works are characterized b y surrealistic theories. Du r i n g his stay i n the Un i t e d States h e became interested i n I n d i a n painting, a n d his exhibition a t the Louise Leiris Gallery, o n his return t o Paris, showed the effect of this influence. H e settled a t Aix-en-Provence where t h e southern light softened his s ha r p lines; i n t he me a n t ime his stay i n Venice revealed t o h i m t he effect o f mist o n t he diffusion o f light. 71 Day diagram (Diagramme d ' un e journée) 1947 1.58 x 1.01 7 2 T h e p o r t of L a Rochelle i n yellow, orange a n d red (La Rochelle, jaune, orange et rouge) 1947 0.83 x 0.96 MA T I S S E Henri Galerie Louise Leiris Galerie Louise Leiris Bo r n o n t he 31st of December, 1869, a t Cateau-Cambresis (Nord). His parents wa n t e d h i m t o b e a lawyer, b u t the urge t o p a i n t was stronger. Tog e t h e r with Ro u a u l t a n d Desvallieres, was Gustave Moreau's pupil. H e concentrated his efforts t o free the colour f r om the modulations which h a d been devised by the Impressionist a n d Pointilliste schools. A tireless worker, h e sought for a simplified f o rm of a r t where only the essential was expressed. H i s paintings are a balance o f p u r e colours. F o r h im, Cezanne a n d the Eastern painters are only starting points. I n his decorative compositions a n d his canvases h e created a f o rm of art i n which the expression of the ou twa r d world reached the same subtle harmony as music a n d poetry. Matisse travelled i n Spain, Italy, Germany, Russia, Algeria, Morocco a n d England, d r awi ng deeply personal themes from the scenes h e saw. Historically h e greatly contributed t o the t r i ump h of "fauvism"— i n o t h e r words, of the use of p u r e colour. Because of his constant creative work a n d his colourful harmonies h e deserves to b e placed i n a foremost position among t he French painters. I n 1950 Matisse received the I n t e r na t i ona l G r a n d Prix de la Peinture a t the Biennial Exh i b i t i on of Venice; a n d i n 1951 his exhibitions i n T o k y o and New York were extremely successful a n d wo n h i m wide acclaim. 73 74 75 Seascape a t T h e Ca p d'Antibes (Paysage d u Cap d'Antibes) 0.50 x 0.61 Saint Michel Qu a y (Quai Saint Michel) 0.59 x 0.72 Nu d e o n a yellow chaise-longue ( N u a la chaise-longue jaune) 0.56 x 0.84 M E T Z I N G E R Jean Bo r n a t Nantes o n the 24th of J une , 1883. H i s interest i n a r t was aroused a t the Mu s e um of Nantes a n d h e began pa i n t i ng wh e n a college student. I n 1903 settled i n Paris, a n d his pa i n t i ng was influenced by Seurat. First a n impressionist, t h e n a divisionist, Metzinger was slightly influenced by "les fauves." I n 1909 h e shifted t o cubism a n d became a theoretician of t h a t school. I n 1911 he participated i n t he Salon des Indépendants, a n d i n 1912 i n the Salon o f the Section d'or, leading t he struggle wi t h Braque, Gleizes, Gris, Leger, Picasso, Villon. H e t a ugh t a t the Académie de la Palette, wi t h Segonzac a n d Le Fauconnier, a n d a t the Arenius Academy. Between 1921 a n d 1924 h e reverted to a representative form o f a r t which h e called "constructive realism," a n d since has been alternately p a i n t i ng purely abstract compositions a n d classical canvases. I n 1952, retrospective exhibition a t the Galerie "Ar t Vivant" i n Paris. Metzinger human i z ed cubism, interpreting n a t u r e mo r e as a source of spiritual emotion than as a dictionary of geometric forms. 76 Still life wi t h p i pe (Nature morte a la pipe) 0.81 x 0.65 77 Wo m a n wi t h a mi r r o r (Femme au miroir) 1.00 x 0.73 M I N A U X Andre' Galerie "Ar t Vivant" Galerie "Ar t Vivant" Bo r n i n Paris o n t he 5 t h of September, 1923. Hi s father was a n ex-student o f the Boulle school. Secondary studies. At t ended t he school of Decorative Arts (1941-1945) where h e became acquainted wi t h t he professors Brianchon, Oudot a n d Charlemagne. Hi s first paintings showed a curious similarity to the paintings o f L a Patelliere wh i ch h e h a d never seen. I n 1948 h e spent his holidays i n Italy. He also visited Brittany, Provence, Belgium and Spain, which inspired his great p a i n t i ng of the 1951 Salon d'Automne. Hi s canvases are ma r ked by the geometric patterns of cubism a n d yet are always infused w i t h a search for beautiful sub- stance a n d a deep i n n e r feeling. I n 1949 received t he P r i x d e la Critique. 78 Coun t r y still life (Nature inorte cam pagnarde) 1.46 x 0.89 [ 2 6 ] [27]