Marcel Mouly

"Surprise Bleue et Vase Bleue" Lithograph, pencil-signed by the artist

Unknown

A winner of two of France’s highest honors, the Chevalier de L'Ordre des Arts et Lettres in 1957 and the Premier Prix de Lithographie in 1973, artist Marcel Mouly was associated with Fauvism and found inspiration in the Cubism of Pablo Picasso and the intense colors associated with the work of Henri Matisse. He began his journey to stardom within the dark confines of a German prison cell during the Second World War.

While Mouly studied drawing classes as a youth, it was not until he was placed in solitary confinement that he decided to dedicate his life to pursuing art.

Mistaken for a spy during WWII, Mouly was traveling through Normandy when he was questioned by German soldiers about his identity. He was subsequently imprisoned by the occupying forces in France and was released in 1943. Once free, he met French artist Edouard Pignon, with whom Mouly rented famous sculptor Jacques Lipchitz’s Boulogne studio. Mouly studied under Lipchitz and had his first showing of two paintings at the Salon d'Automne, alongside French painter, Henri Mattise.

In 1948, the French government acquired his Femme à la Lampe, and a flurry of exhibitions followed in Italy, Sweden, Denmark and elsewhere. Mouly’s work is held in the collections of more than 20 museums including the Musée Nationale d’Art Moderne, the Museum of Modern Art, Bibliothèque Nationale and the Los Angeles County Museum. 

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