Yves Brayer (1907 - 1990) — Preparing The Pig

Preparing the pig
Mixed media on paper, signed lower right.
27 x 21 cm

Yves Brayer: Luminous traveler of the School of Paris

Yves Brayer was born on November 18, 1907 in Versailles and grew up in Bourges, where his talent from childhood led him to the École des Arts. In 1924, he moved to Paris, frequenting Montparnasse, the Grande Chaumière, then the École des Beaux-Arts with Lucien Simon. While still a student, he exhibited in 1927 at the Salon d'Automne and the Salon des Indépendants, before leaving on a scholarship to Spain - a revelation at the Prado - then to Morocco.
Winner of the Prix de Rome in 1930, he stayed three years at the Villa Médicis before returning to Paris and holding his first solo exhibition, strongly asserting a sensitive and balanced figurative style. The war brought him back to Cordes-sur-Ciel, where he founded the "Académie de Cordes".
In Paris, he designed sets and costumes for the Opera. After 1945, he discovered Provence, the Alpilles and the Camargue, places that were now central to his inspiration, marking a new chromatic clarity in his work.
A tireless traveler, he traveled throughout Europe, America and Asia, bringing back drawings and watercolors in vibrant colors, while he produced numerous lithographs, engravings, literary illustrations and stage designs for major European stages.
Awarded the Grand Prix des Beaux-Arts (1954), elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts (1957), president of the Salon d'Automne, and curator of the Musée Marmottan for over a decade, Yves Brayer died in 1990 in Paris. Museums were dedicated to him, in Cordes in 1960, then in Les Baux-de-Provence in 1991. Through his landscapes, scenes of life and compositions, he remains one of the most luminous and realistic observers of the 20th century.

Discover more works by this artist on the gallery's website: https://www.galeriepentcheff.fr/fr/peintre-yves-brayer#Bio