| Charles Estienne was
born in 1908 at Brest and died in 1966 in Paris.He was an history
and geography teacher.In the spring of 1938, he met J.D. thanks
to Odile Vacherot (see Degand), one
of his fellow-teachers at Brest, whom he married a few months later.
Since he was very keen on painting, he soon stroke up a friendship
with J.D. Together in 1941, they discovered Paul
Sérusier's works and writings. Three years later,
J.D. came to abstraction.
He introduced Estienne to Domela, Lanskoy,
Magnelli and Nicolas de Stael... Then,
Charles Estienne was appointed in Paris to supervise the art column
of Henri Thomas'weekly Terres des Hommes, illustrated by J.D.
who hoped to earn some money... Once the paper disappeared, Estienne
contributed to Combat, as well as to
Art d'aujourdhui and to L'Observateur (thereafter called
France-Observateur). In 1950, the Beaune publishing house,
run by Suzanne de Coninck published a satirical writing by Charles
Estienne"Is Abstract Art an Academism ? " thus triggering off
the " quarrel over warm and
cold ". The following year, he had Kandinsky's On the
Spiritual in Art published by the same house.
Estienne and J.D. remained very close
until the beginning of the 50s. Subsequently, the art critic
advocated the new movement called " Tachisme ". J.D. participated
in a great number of group exhibitions organized by Estienne, for
example " Painting and Poetry " at the Gallery des Deux Iles, "
Abstract paintings and sculptures " at Colette Allendy's, " Painters
of the New School of Paris " at the Babylone Gallery, " The insulting
Rose " at La Hune Gallery, " Perpetuation of Gallic art ", at the
Musée pédagogique (in 1955)...
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| " Deyrolle is a genuine abstract painter,
since he does not feel the necessity to start from the external
elements of the outside world, but rather from purely plastic
concepts to achieve a purely aesthetic situation based upon
absolutely and strictly pure plastic elements... Yet, between
the two extremes, by living, exerybody may experience so many
different emotions and feelings. Enough to leave aside
stylistic compositions and give the plastic work the plurality
of meanings, the harmony characteristic of natural rhythms,
finally the breathing and the sort of ease which allows to claim
that Deyrolle has a complete mastery of the art field and the
world that he tried to explore..." ["
Jean Deyrolle or the continuation of painting", Art d'aujourdhui,
April-May 1951]. |
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