Henri Laurens
Henri Laurens(February 18, 1885 – May 5, 1954) was a Frenchsculptorandillustrator.
Early life and education
[edit]Born in Paris, Henri Laurens worked as a stonemason before he became a sculptor. From 1899 to 1902, he attended drawing classes at the École d'Art Industriel,[2]during which he produced works that were greatly influenced by the popularity ofAuguste Rodin.
Career
[edit]Later Laurens was drawn to a new gathering of artistic creativity inMontparnasse.From 1915, he began to sculpt in theCubiststyle after meetingPablo Picasso,Georges Braque,Juan GrisandFernand Léger.[3]
Laurens was exempted from call-up for the First World War, after having a leg amputated in 1909 due to osteo-tuberculosis.[4]
Multi-talented, Laurens worked with poster paint, andcollage.He was an engraver, and created theatre design and decoration. In 1915, he illustrated a book for his friend, the authorPierre Reverdy.
In 1937, he was awarded theHelena RubinsteinPrize, which brought him in additional commissions.[5]In 1938, he shared an exhibition with Braque and Picasso that travelled to majorScandinaviancities. In 1947, he made prints for book illustrations. In 1948, he exhibited his art at the important internationalVenice Biennale.That same year, he exhibited at theGalerie d'Art ModerneinBasel,Switzerland.
Many of his sculptures are massive objects. An example of this style is the monumental pieceL'Amphion,which he first designed on a smaller scale before created the final version in 1952 for theCentral University of Venezuela,Caracas, after a request from the architectCarlos Raúl Villanueva.[5]
Laurens' sculptural work influenced the work of architectJørn Utzon,famous for the Sydney Opera House, in particular Laurens' tomb for an aviator designed for the cemetery of Montparnasse, Paris, in 1924.[6]
Death
[edit]Henri Laurens died in Paris, after collapsing while out on an evening walk,[5]and was interred in theCimetière du Montparnassethere. His tomb is decorated with his sculpture,La Douleur.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]
- ^Henri Laurens, in Celine Arnauld, Tournevire: Roman. Paris: Editions de "L'Esprit nouveau", 1919, p. 6.The International Dada Archive, The University of Iowa Libraries
- ^"Henri Laurens".Retrieved10 August2022.
- ^Christopher Green,Cubism and its Enemies, Modern Movements and Reaction in French Art, 1916–1928,Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 1987, p. 23.
- ^Cooper, Philip.Cubism.London: Phaidon, 1995, p. 114.ISBN0714832502
- ^abcGeorges Braque (1964).Georges Braque (1882-1963), Henri Laurens (1885-1954): Drawings, Gouaches and Collages.J.P.L. Fine Arts. p. 22.
- ^Frampton, Kenneth (1995).Studies in Tectonic Culture.London: The MIT Press. pp.277,279.ISBN0-262-56149-2.
External links
[edit]- Henri Laurensin American public collections, on the French Sculpture Census website
- Henri Laurensin the collections of the V&A
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Other | |