Félix Labisse was a self-taught painter, illustrator and theater designer born in Douai, a small commune in France close to the Belgian border. In Douai, Labisse studied at the Collège Saint Jean and later enrolled at the École de Pêche in Ostend, a city on the Belgian coast. Labisse was closely associated with the Expressionist painter James Ensor, whom he met on a visit to Ostend in 1922. Subsequently, Labisse’s early works are anchored in Flemish Expressionism under the influence of Ensor. In his later works, Labisse developed his own aesthetic, exploring the boundaries between fantasy, ritual, magic and eroticism. He experimented with perspective and used motifs such as naked women and hybrid beasts in fantastical settings. Labisse also met the filmmaker Henri Storck, and they founded the Club du Cinéma d’Ostende, which disseminated avant-garde films by Man Ray, Carl Dreyer and Fritz Lang.
Beginning in 1927, Labisse divided his time between Paris and Ostend, becoming a major French painter. His first exhibition, which gained him critical acclaim, took place at the Ostend Gallery of Modern Art in July 1928. In 1933, Labisse settled in Paris and produced the set and costumes for Autour d’une Mère at the Théâtre de l’Atelier. In Paris, he became part of the Surrealist milieu, meeting André Masson, Max Ernst, Raymond Queneau, René Magritte and Paul Delvaux. It was in 1938 that Labisse fully established his career as a painter after his exhibition at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. In 1947, the French filmmaker Alain Resnaise created a short film starring Labisse in his studio titled Visite à Félix. Labisse was also a successful illustrator, producing drawings for the books Le Bain avec Andromède (1944) and Histoire Naturelle (1948) by Robert Desnos. His subjects included creatures such as the cyclops and the medieval French Guivre — a serpentine creature.
By 1951, Labisse moved to Neuilly-sur-Seine, where he would later die. Closely linked to Surrealism — a movement to which he never completely adhered too — Labisse is perhaps most recognized for his 1960s series of austere, blue goddess-like women. Interestingly, his political differences estranged him from the writer André Breton, a communist who was the founder of Surrealism and author of the Surrealist Manifesto. Remaining on the sidelines of Breton’s movement, Labisse continued to explore the limits of his imagination through painting. In 1957, Labisse published his Le Sorcier des Familles: Almanach Fatidique, featuring texts and illustrations in the layout of a calendar. He earned the respect of Breton, who wrote to him: "Beyond what may have sometimes divided us, let me tell you that I greatly appreciate your Sorcier des Familles […] This is a surrealist book, as I see it. My warmest compliments."
Labisse had his first retrospective in July 1960 at Knokke Casino in Belgium, where he exhibited 105 paintings. In 1966, he was elected a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in France, and in 1974, he became a member of the jury at the Cannes festival. Labisse maintained a lifelong friendship with Ensor that is immortalized in the painting Bonjour M. Ensor (1964).
(Biography provided by Stern Pissarro Gallery)
Festival Mondial Du Film Beau-Arts De Belgique
By Felix Labisse
Located in London, GB
Original Belgian film poster for the Festival Mondial du Film Beau-Arts de Belgique (La Naissance du Cinema Lumiere Melies) Mondial du Film et Des Beaux-Artsheld in Brussels, Belgiu...
$1,034
H 29 in W 20.25 in D 0.01 in
Barbet Schroeder 'More' Original Vintage Movie Poster, Japanese, 1971
Located in Devon, GB
A bewitching full-bleed black and white photograph of a supine Mimsy Farmer confronts us on this scarce english-language poster for the first Japanese release of Barbet Schroeder's 1...
Paper, Linen
$2,482
H 30.25 in W 40 in D 0.01 in
James Bond 'For Your Eyes Only' Original Vintage Movie Poster, British, 1981
By Brian Bysouth, Bill Gold
Located in Devon, GB
The twelfth film in the James Bond series, EON Productions 'For Your Eyes Only' saw a return to earth with a more realistic and less sensational storyline after the extravagance of '...
Paper, Linen
James Bond 'Goldfinger' Original Vintage Film Poster, Swedish, 1967
By Gosta Aberg
Located in Devon, GB
Considered the quintessential and definitive Bond film, the third instalment in EON Productions' James Bond series set the template for many of the subsequent films, with its tongue in cheek humour, extensive use of gadgets and technology and multiple foreign locations. The first Bond blockbuster, 1964s 'Goldfinger' was also the first Bond film to utilise a standalone pre-credits sequence, the first to employ a pop star to sing the theme song and the first to win an Academy Award. The plot saw 007 uncover a plot to contaminate the United States gold reserve at Fort Knox while investigating the smuggling activities of powerful gold magnate Auric Goldfinger. This stunning poster designed by prolific Swedish...
Linen, Paper
Arts Decoratifs Du Xxeme Siecle & Design (Book)
Located in North Yorkshire, GB
We have two Christies sale catalogues dated from 2008 which feature many important pieces by some of the best known and most sought after designers of the 20th century and Art Deco e...
Paper
Canadian Wartime Poster, World War Two
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
Canadian wartime poster, world war two.
L'art Du Meuble En Belgique Au XXeme Siecle De Horta a Nos Jours (Book)
Located in North Yorkshire, GB
By Frans Defour The Art of furniture in Belgium in the 20th century, this is a scarce hardback book in a presentation slipcase, 213 pages with colour and...
Paper
$345
H 15.5 in W 11 in D 0.1 in
'The Terminator' Original Vintage Movie Poster by Milan Pecák, Czech, 1990
Located in Devon, GB
Along with Jakub Erol's stylized design for the Polish release, celebrated Czech artist Milan Pecák's imposing illustration of Arnold Schwarzenegger as 'The Terminator' is one of the...
Paper
Italian Motorcycle, Mondial 1960 Sprint, Classic Motorbike.
Located in Oxfordshire, GB
F B (Fratelli Boselli) Mondial 1960 Mondial Sprint Motorcycle. This exquisitely engineered and beautifully constructed 1960 Mondial Sprint motorbike is unmistakably Italian. It has m...
Steel
$1,310
H 28.63 in W 20.5 in D 0.01 in
'The Italian Job' Original Vintage Japanese B2 Movie Poster, 1969
Located in Devon, GB
An action-packed Japanese B2 poster for the 1969 British crime caper "The Italian Job," starring Michael Caine as cockney criminal Charlie Croker, fresh out of prison and planning a heist in Italy. Consistently voted one of the greatest ever British movies, the quintessential sixties film has become a cult favourite and a Classic of the heist genre, while Caine's famous one-liner "You're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!" has taken on a life of its own. Despite receiving a Golden Globe nomination for Best English-Language Foreign Film, "The Italian Job" was not a success in America at the time of its release. Caine blamed its failure on a misleading marketing Campaign, explaining to Empire magazine that the US poster "was a naked woman and me. And I said, 'This is for kids. There aren't any naked women in it! We're going to get a load of old guys coming in to see naked women and they're going to be pissed off, and mums aren't going to bring their children.' They said, 'We're not going to change the poster,' so I got on a plane and came home." While utilizing the same elements as the US poster in a more diminutive form, this superb Japanese poster places its focus on the real stars of the movie - the red, white and blue mini coopers...
Paper
$691
H 31.5 in W 22.5 in D 0.1 in
'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' Original Vintage Movie Poster, Czech, 1978
Located in Devon, GB
A fantastically bizarre poster by Jan Weber for the first Czech release of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." Although Western films were shown during the Soviet era in the Communist Bloc, American publicity materials were banned, allowing the state-commissioned artists to operate with total creative freedom from the demands of the big Hollywood studios, offering quirky and sometimes surreal interpretations which often had little reference to the film. Weber's intense halftone design featuring a triplicate of manic Jack Nicholson faces is presumably a nod to insanity and multiple personality disorders. Based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey...
Paper
'The Wicker Man' Original Vintage Movie Poster, Australian, 1974
Located in Devon, GB
Bearing the tagline 'An island lost to unspeakable terrors of pagan rituals!' this scarce Australian one sheet displays by far the best poster artwork produced for the 1970 cult Brit...
Linen, Paper
'The Shining' Original Vintage British Quad Film Poster, 1980
Located in Devon, GB
A scarce and unusual 'Weekend Mirror' style teaser quad for the British release of Stanley Kubrick's 1980 modern horror masterpiece 'The Shining,' starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall. Based on the bestselling novel by Stephen King, the seminal psychological horror initially opened to mixed reviews, before growing momentum over the summer of 1980 to become an American box-office success. With anticipation building for the October 1980 British release, Warner Bros. made the canny marketing decision to reproduce a tabloid newspaper spread from the Saturday, August 30, 1980, edition of the Daily Mirror, on "the tide...
Paper, Linen
Labisse Felix Lithography Signed Labisse "Nu"
By Felix Labisse
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Labisse Felix (1905-1982) lithography signed Labisse "Nu" E.A épreuve d'artiste.
Paper
Labisse Felix Lithography Signed Labisse "Nu"
By Felix Labisse
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Labisse Felix (1905-1982) lithography signed Labisse "Nu" 141/180.