Rastislaw Racoff ( 1904-1982). Paris Street, 1981. Oil On Panel. Signed Lower Left.

Rastislaw RACOFF
(St. Petersburg, Russian Empire 1904 - Paris 1982)

Paris Street, 1981
Oil on panel
Signed and dated lower left
35 × 27 cm

Born in Saint Petersburg in 1904, Rastislaw Racoff grew up in Siberia before fleeing the revolution with his family in 1918, travelling through China before settling in France. It was near the Chinese border that he discovered painting thanks to a theatre set designer, then furthered his training by developing a passion for Russian icons and primitive European painting. Arriving in Paris in the 1920s, he had a difficult start, working in various jobs while developing a deep attachment to the capital, whose history he studied and documented in Old Paris.

His career took a turn in 1946 with his first exhibition at the Galerie Vendôme, followed by a resounding success in 1952 at Dina Vierny, where all his paintings were sold. Racoff then devoted himself entirely to painting, working with extreme meticulousness. Close to Jules Lefranc, he depicted the streets and quays of Paris, often deserted, bathed in a poetic and mysterious atmosphere, as well as still lifes and trompe-l'oeil paintings of great delicacy. His unique universe, combining naivety, rigour and strangeness, is both deeply moving in its sincerity and wonderfully inventive.

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