André Masson (1896-1987) french painter, sculptor, illustrator, designer and writer, was born at Balagny (Oise). He spent most of his youth in Brussels, where he worked as a pattern-drawer in an embroidery studio and studied part-time at the Académie des Beaux-Arts. Then moved to Paris and studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts 1912-14. He served in the French Army 1914-19, and was gravely wounded. He lived in the South of France (1919-22), then returned to Paris where he met Gris, Derain, and later Miró and Breton. His first one-man exhibition was at the Galerie Simon, Paris in 1923. Paintings of forests, card players and still lifes, followed by experiments with automatic drawing. From 1924-9 he participated in the Surrealist movement. He made further works exploring chance effects, including sand paintings, as well as paintings of metamorphoses of animal and human forms, themes of germination, combats and massacres, with emphasis on violence and eroticism. He lived in Spain 1934-36 where he made paintings of bullfights, Spanish myths, etc. He took refuge in the USA between 1941-45, where he lived at New Preston, Connecticut, and made works inspired by the elemental forces of nature. He returned to France in 1945 and settled in Aix-en-Provence in 1947. Here he painted landscape themes such as mountains and waterfalls for several years, followed by some almost completely abstract pieces. His works also include sets and costumes for the theatre, book illustrations and a number of small sculptures.
This is part 11 of 15-part series on the works of André Masson:
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| 1972 The Messengers of Hybris pastel on coloured paper laid down on canvas 90 x 71 cm |
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| 1972 The Departure two-colour lithograph on paper 32.3 x 24.7 cm |
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| 1972 Sonnets colour lithograph on paper 65 x 50 cm |
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| 1972 Orpheus colour lithograph on paper 65 x 50 cm |
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| 1972 Orpheus colour lithograph on paper 62 x 48 cm |
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| 1972 Offering oil on canvas 73 x 60 cm |
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| 1972 Nymphs of Fontainebleau aquatint on paper 28.5 x 23.5 cm |
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| 1972 Lilith lithograph on paper 27 x 20.5 cm |
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| 1972 Untitled (Torso) colour lithograph on paper 31 x 24 cm |
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| 1972 Titan Toad colour lithograph on paper 37 x 29 cm |
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| 1972 The Woman with the Fish etching on paper 31.7 x 27.9 cm |
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| 1973 Untitled from Homage to Picasso series aquatint 75 x 57.2 cm (sheet) |
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| 1973 The New Daphne, sequel to Entrevisions oil on canvas 73 x 99.8 cm |
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| 1973 Men and Women drypoint etching on paper 27.9 x 38.1 cm |
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| 1973 Garland for Ophelia etching and aquatint on paper 47.3 x 36.4 cm |
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| 1973-79 Pyramus and Thisbe aquatint on paper 50 x 65 cm |
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| 1973-79 Daphnis and Chloe colour aquatint on paper 50 x 65 cm |
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| 1974 Judith lithograph on Arches paper 53 x 75 cm |
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| 1974 Demiurge ink and ink wash drawing on paper 56 x 41.5 cm |
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| 1974 Untitled from "Bonjour Max Ernst" published by Les Éditions Georges Visat colour etching and aquatint on wove paper |
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| 1974 The Seventh Canto 1 etching on paper 37.4 x 27.9 cm (sheet) |
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| 1974 The Seventh Canto 3 etching on paper 37.4 x 27.9 cm (sheet) |
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| 1974 The Pilgrim and the Lovers oil on canvas 60.3 x 81 cm |
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| 1974 Poems by Lawrence Saphire, Editions de la Lune Bleue Untitled etching on Japan Rice paper |
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| 1974 Poems by Lawrence Saphire, Editions de la Lune Bleue Untitled etching on Japan Rice paper |
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| 1975 I Dream colour lithograph 52 x 76 cm |
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| 1975 Dance of the Sunflowers colour lithograph on wove paper 76 x 53 cm |
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| 1975 Characters in a Garden ink and watercolour on paper 50 x 65.2 cm |
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| 1975 Apuleius' Golden Ass V colour lithograph on paper 54 x 76 cm |
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| 1975 Homage to Michelangelo: Sun Figures colour lithograph on paper 38.1 x 26.6 cm |
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| 1975 Méta.Morphoses (Portfolio of 4 colour etching and aquatints on Arches paper) 38.1 x 28.6 cm |
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| 1975 1975 Méta.Morphoses (Portfolio of 4 colour etching and aquatints on Arches paper) 38.1 x 28.6 cm |
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| 1975 Leda and the Swan colour lithograph on paper 66 x 48 cm |
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| The Venetian colour lithograph on paper 65 x 24.1 cm |
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| The Prince Iris colour lithograph on Arches paper 50.8 x 66 cm |
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| Bacchanale colour lithograph on Arches paper 66 x 50.8 cm |
