Charles Laberne (1909-1998) Abstract Composition "rays And Shadows" Oil On Canvas

Oil on canvas by Charles Laberne, a French painter born in 1909 in Damprichard, Doubs, and who died in 1998 in Bellay, Ain.
Signed lower right, co-signed and titled "Les rayons et les ombres" (Rays and Shadows) on the reverse.
Good condition, minor craquelure in the upper right.
Giltwood frame.
Dimensions of the painting alone : ​​81 x 65 cm.
Dimensions with frame : 82.5 x 66.5 cm.
Charles Laberne was a self-taught artist who successfully combined his profession as a pharmacist with a consuming passion for painting. Settling in Toulon-sur-Arroux in 1935, it was during the Occupation, when he joined the Resistance, that he discovered his artistic vocation at the age of 35. What began as a Sunday pastime on the banks of the Arroux River quickly transformed into a demanding artistic quest that led him from naive figuration to pure abstraction.
His talent was recognized as early as 1950. He exhibited in numerous cities in France and abroad: Paris, Lyon, Deauville, Cherbourg, Vichy, Dijon, Montceau-les-Mines, Autun… and also New York, Toronto, Koblenz, Spa, Monte Carlo… he associated with world-renowned painters: Picasso, Miró, Buffet…
He received the Diploma of Honor at the Paris Salon of Modern Art in 1961, the New York Prize in 1962, and the Gold Medal at the Grand Prix de Peinture in Nice in 1965. One of his works was acquired by the Cherbourg Museum of Fine Arts in 1966.