Fleurs De Lys, Suzanne Rey De Jaegher (1907 - 1994)

Trained at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts and awarded the Brizard Prize in 1932, Suzanne Rey de Jaegher belongs to that generation of women painters who, in 1930s Paris, succeeded in gaining visibility within a milieu still largely dominated by men. Based in Montparnasse, she worked at the heart of a vibrant artistic community, navigating between official Salons and independent networks.
This still life perfectly illustrates her ambition: to give the floral motif—long considered merely decorative—a new artistic dignity. The lilies, rising from a cobalt-blue vase, combine academic rigor with modern daring. The frontal composition, the purity of whites and greens, and the balance between restraint and chromatic intensity situate the work between tradition and modernity, in implicit dialogue with the contemporaneous explorations of Art Deco (Tamara de Lempicka) and American modernism (Georgia O’Keeffe).
Beyond its technical mastery, the painting embodies a historical testimony: that of women artists asserting their identity at a time shaken by economic crisis and growing international tensions. In the silent monumentality of these flowers lies a discreet manifesto of emancipation and modernity, which endows this work with its force and its significance for the history of twentieth-century art.

A detailed note is available upon requet.