Alexis Kow (1901-1978)- The Hockey Match

Alexis Kow (1901 -1978)- The Hockey Match This original work with bright colors and cubist lines is signed lower right. Framed dimensions: 86 x 45 centimeters. His father, an academic, man of letters and multilingual journalist, left his country and entrusted his son's education to a private school in Lausanne, which taught him French, among other things. He then joined the Technical College of Arts and Crafts in Geneva. He arrived in Paris in 1920, where he was employed in the design office of a coachbuilder in Levallois-Perret. It was in 1922 at Panhard et Levassor that he truly began his career as an advertising designer. The success of his poster for a torpedo, captioned "Fast as an arrow", made him known to car manufacturers. He specialized in car advertising but also produced paintings and sculptures. Alexis Kow obtained French nationality in January 1940. He continued his professional activity almost until his death in 1978. Work From 1922, prestigious brands in the "automobile" sector called on him for their visual advertising (posters, advertisements, sales catalogs), but sometimes also for the development of the definitive silhouette of a vehicle. His longest collaboration was with Panhard, for whom he became the emblematic poster designer: from 1922 to 195810. In his drawings, his style is characterized by elegant lines, a pure line, the representation of speed by taut vanishing lines, and the work of contrasts between shadows and reflections. During the years 1920 - 1950, most of his posters were declined in small formats, to be inserted in magazines. Public collections In addition to the work of Pierre Cornette de Saint-Cyr referenced in the "Bibliography" section, which can be found at the Pompidou Center, Some of his works are in public collections: The Bibliothèque Forney, a library of the city of Paris specializing in decorative arts, crafts and their techniques, fine arts and graphic arts, holds 12 works by Alexis Kow (posters and poster designs, catalogs, files). The collection of the André-Malraux Museum of Modern Art (MuMa) in Le Havre holds a 1933 poster project by Alexis Kow for Panhard. Awards Alexis Kow's work won an award at the Polo de Bagatelle artistic competition in 1933 where he received the Premier Grand Prix, the highest award.