Known for his pastoral landscapes, still-life paintings of flower bouquets, and portraits — notably of his wife, Claudine — French painter Marcel Dyf is widely regarded as one of the last of the true Impressionists. His mastery of composition and use of soft colors influenced many artists, setting the standard for 20th-century Post-Impressionism.
Dyf was born Marcel Dreyfus in 1899 in Paris. As a child, he displayed artistic talent but briefly considered a career as an engineer before becoming a professional painter at 23, influenced by the likes of Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Rembrandt van Rijn and Johannes Vermeer.
In 1922, Dyf set up a studio in Arles and initially painted landscapes, capturing scenes of the surrounding countryside in oil on canvas. He produced many landscapes depicting Provence, Brittany, Normandy and locales further afield such as Venice, Morocco and Israel.
It wasn’t long before Dyf’s works caught the eye of art dealers and collectors, and he was urged to exhibit in Paris at the Salon des Artistes Français, the Salon d’Automne and the Tuileries.
In 1935, he moved from Arles to Paris and, at the outbreak of World War II, joined the French Resistance. Following the war, during the 1950s, he met 19-year-old model Claudine Godat, who — despite their 36-year age difference — became his wife, muse and subject for many of his most well-known portraits. These include Claudine Songeuse, Claudine and the Red Rose and Claudine with Flowers.
Over the course of his career, Dyf created a substantial body of work — he made landscape paintings, portraits and figurative works. He also painted frescoes in the Museon Arlaten in Arles and produced decorative pieces in the town halls of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer and St-Martin-de-Crau.
Following his death in 1985, Dyf’s paintings continued to be featured in numerous exhibitions. The General Council of Bouches-du-Rhône staged a retrospective of his early works in 1995. Four years later, a show that marked what would have been his 100th birthday was held at the L’Espace Dyf in Bois-d’Arcy.
Today, Dyf’s paintings and prints are highly sought by dealers and collectors of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art.
Find original Marcel Dyf paintings and wall decorations on 1stDibs.
Champ de ble - Post Impressionist Landscape Oil by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed oil on canvas landscape circa 1960 by French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts a golden wheat field, contrasted against dark hills in the distance. Sign...
Canvas, Oil
"The Golf" Chiberta in Southern France Post-Impressionist Oil on Canvas Painting
By Marcel Dyf
Located in New York, NY
Marcel Dyf was mostly known for his effortless way to captures the times of the people. Executing most works on-site, he truly was able to absorb the energy and the day, movement of ...
Canvas, Oil
"Le Bassin des Tuileries a Paris" Marcel Dyf, Impressionist Garden Fountain
By Marcel Dyf
Located in New York, NY
Marcel Dyf Le Bassin des Tuileries a Paris, 1950 Signed lower right Oil on canvas 18 x 21 1/2 inches Provenance Private Collection, Louisville, Kentucky Marcel Dyf, born Marcel Dr...
Canvas, Oil
$20,862
Mauldre au debut de Printemps - Post Impressionist Landscape Oil by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed oil on canvas riverscape circa 1950 by French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts the Mauldre - a long river in north-central France which is an estuary fo...
Canvas, Oil
$41,590
Voiliers
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas Canvas size: 24 x 28.5 inches Framed size: 32.75 x 38.5 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
Le Moisson - Provence - Post Impressionist Landscape Oil by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed oil on canvas figures in landscape circa 1950 by French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts doing a late summer harvest in Provence, France. Signature: Si...
Canvas, Oil
MARCEL DYF Femme à sa Toilette, Modern Oil Painting, Framed, Mid-20th Century
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Rancho Santa Fe, CA
H 30.25 x W 26.75 x D 2 in. (framed) Signed lower right: “DYF” Dyf Archives ID No. 2063 Provenance Christie’s East, New York, Modern Paintings, Drawings & Sculptures, November 10, 1992, lot 60 as Nu à sa toilette. Private collection Private collection, New York (Purchased from above) This item is in our New York City warehouse and can be viewed by appointment. Marcel Dyf’s 1950 oil painting...
Oil, Canvas
$27,457
Cale Du Logeo
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas Canvas size: 15 x 18.5 inches Framed size: 20 x 23 inches Signed lower left
Canvas, Oil
Un Bouqet D'Ete Dans Un Vase En Verre
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas, Canvas size: 21.75 x 18 inches Framed size: 29 x 22.5 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
Marcel Dyf Leccon De Musique
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Dallas, TX
Marcel Dyf (French, 1899-1985) Leçon de musique; Music Lesson Circa 1965, Oil on canvas Dimensions: 29 x 24 inches (73.0 x 61.0 cm) Framed: 36 x 31 Inches Signed lower right: Dyf T...
Paint
L'Oise a Lille Adam (Ile De France)
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas Canvas size: 18 x 21.5 inches Framed: 26.5 x 30 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
"The Gypsy" Pensive Girl Sitting in a Field Oil on Canvas Impressionist Painting
By Marcel Dyf
Located in New York, NY
Marcel Dyf was mostly known for his effortless way to captures the times of the people. Executing most works on-site, he truly was able to absorb the energy and the day, movement of ...
Canvas, Oil
Claudine in the Forest
By Marcel Dyf
Located in New York, NY
In our painting of Claudine, Dyf returns to one of his favorite genres, and with most likely his favorite model. Realized with dramatic suggestive strokes of thick paint, Claudine is...
Oil, Canvas
Claudine Oil Painting on Canvas, Post-Impressionist, Signed, Framed
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Stratford-Upon-Avon, GB
Marcel Dyf, France (1899-1985) Claudine Medium: Oil on canvas Framed size: 29.5 x 26 Inches Unframed size: 21.5 x 18 Inches Signature: Signed Provenance: Private collection, UK ...
Canvas, Oil
Djeuner Champtre
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Sheffield, MA
Marcel Dyf French, 1899-1985 Djeuner Champtre Oil on canvas 23 ½ by 28 ¾ in. W/frame 31 ½ by 36 ¾ in. Signed lower left Marcel Dyf (Marcel Dreyfus) was born in Paris on October 7,...
Oil
$17,500
H 38.25 in W 44.25 in D 2 in
"The Hill Pasture" 1901 by Ida Josephine Burgess, Michigan Hills Impressionist
Located in Yardley, PA
A large, sweeping Michigan summer vista by the accomplished American painter, Ida Josephine Burgess (1855-1934). Burgess gives us a high vantage point over a lush hill pasture descen...
Canvas, Oil
Montmartre. Oil on canvas, 55x46 cm
By Merio Ameglio, 1897-1970
Located in Riga, LV
Montmartre. Oil on canvas, 55x46 cm Paris landscape with street café Merio Ameglio (1897-1970) Born in San Remo, Italy along the Mediterranean Sea, Mario Amegilo painted many scen...
Canvas, Oil
Cloud Study over Lake Vättern, Vadstena
By Erik Tryggelin
Located in Stockholm, SE
Erik Tryggelin (1878–1962) Sweden Cloud Study over Lake Vättern, Vadstena, 7 September 1935 signed and dated lower right E. Tryggelin 7/9 1935 inscribed Vadstena oil on canvas laid...
Canvas, Masonite, Oil
"The Pump Room Cheltenham Spa", Urban Impressionist Scene
Located in Austin, TX
This impressionist urban landscape by Anthony Klitz depicts the Pump Room Spa in Cheltenham, England in his characteristically unique impressionist style...
Canvas, Oil
$7,950
H 25.5 in W 31.5 in D 2 in
“Florenz (Florence), c. 1910” Post-Impressionist Italy Tuscany Landscape Oil
Located in Yardley, PA
An exceptional post-impressionist view of Florence, Italy by Carl Schmitz-Pleis (1877-1943). In the spring of 1910 Schmitz-Pleis and fellow friend/artist Walter Hugo Ophey travelled...
Canvas, Oil
$5,500
H 99 in W 98.5 in D 0.25 in
A Figurative Pointillist Painting after Georges Seurat’s “Sunday Afternoon…”
Located in San Francisco, CA
On offer is a monumental pointillism painting, a reinterpretation of “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” created a century earlier by French painter George Seurat,...
Canvas, Oil
Henriette Chabot with Peonies
By Jacques Emile Blanche
Located in Mc Lean, VA
This painting was owned by Comte Robert de Montesquiou (1855–1921), Paris Literature: Jane Roberts, Jacques-Émile Blanche (2012), pg. 47 (color illus.), p. 191. Included as no. R...
Canvas, Oil
$37,500
H 32 in W 32 in D 1.25 in
“Palm Trees Along Florida Coast, c. 1940” Jane Peterson Impressionist Palm Beach
By Jane Peterson
Located in Yardley, PA
A wonderful example of Peterson’s views of the Florida Coast during her winter trips down south. Painted during Peterson’s mature period, this lively work underscores the energy of ...
Oil, Canvas
$6,527
H 23.63 in W 37.41 in
'The Moonlit Boathouse ' oil on canvas by Otto Lindberg
By Otto Lindberg
Located in London, GB
Otto Lindberg (1880-1955) 'The Moonlit Boathouse' Oil on canvas 60 x 95 cm, 73.5 x 108 cm framed Signed and dated 1940 There is something mesmerising about the way the moonlight...
Canvas, Oil
$2,847
H 31.89 in W 39.38 in D 0.79 in
"The Naked Soil", Sweeping Ochre Farmland Impressionist Oil Painting on Canvas
By Yves Calméjane
Located in Clermont-Ferrand, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
A deep ochre warmth spreads across this generously scaled oil on canvas, measuring H 31.9 in x W 39.4 in x D 0.8 in, pulling the eye across an undulating rural landscape that breathe...
Canvas, Oil
Place De La Madeleine Le Soir
By Édouard Leon Cortès
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas Canvas size: 24 x 36 inches Framed size: 32.5 x 44.5 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
$9,500
H 42.75 in W 44.5 in D 2.5 in
“Covered Bridge, Kingston, NY, 1927” by Walter Koeniger, Snowy Winter Landscape
By Walter Koeniger
Located in Yardley, PA
Known for his evocative, snow-covered landscapes, Koeniger brings this subject to life with his bold, confident brushwork and keen eye for natural light. The composition centers arou...
Canvas, Oil
Periode De Recolte
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas, Canvas size: 23.5 x 28.75 inches Framed size: 32.25 x 37.25 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
Pleine Floraison
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas Canvas size: 28.75 x 23.75 inches Framed size: 37 x 32 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
Nature Morte
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas Canvas size: 28.75 x 23.75 inches Framed size: 36 x 32 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
Still Life
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on Canvas Canvas Size: 21.75 x 18 inches Framed Size: 28 x 25.5 inches Signed Lower Right
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 34 in W 39 in
Amandiers en fleurs - Post Impressionist Landscape Oil Painting by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed oil on canvas landscape circa 1960 by sought after French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts a view of farmland with almond trees in bloom. Signature: Si...
Canvas, Oil
Claudine Reading
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Belgravia, London, London
Oil on canvas Canvas size: 18 x 21.5 inches Framed size: 26 x 29.5 inches Signed lower right
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 32 in W 37 in
Le champ de coquelicots - Post Impressionist Landscape Oil Painting - Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed oil on canvas figures in landscape by sought after French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts workers picking flowers in a poppy field in St Paul de Vence,...
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 32 in W 37 in
Claudine à la capeline - Post Impressionist Portrait Oil Painting by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Signed oil on canvas portrait by sought after French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts a painting of Claudine seated at a table upon which are a ceramic vase filled with flowers, a basket of fruit a green wine glass and a crumpled napkin. Claudine is wearing red skirt with a white blouse over which her long red hair...
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 26 in W 30 in
Lavoir sur la rivière - Impressionist Oil, Figures in Riverscape by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Beautiful signed oil on canvas riverscape circa 1969 by sought after French impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts two women in a wash house, cleaning clothes in the tree...
Canvas, Oil
Marcel Dyf Young Woman Reading
By Marcel Dyf
Located in San Francisco, CA
Marcel Dyf: 1899-1985. Well listed French painter. Some consider him the last of the great French Impressionists. He has had auction results over $60,000 and has sold for more in gal...
Oil
Sold
H 27.5 in W 23.5 in
Le Salon Rouge - Post Impressionist Oil, Figure in Interior by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
A wonderful oil on canvas circa 1950 by French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf. The work depicts a beautiful brunette woman wearing black and red skirt...
Canvas, Oil
Sold
H 23 in W 26 in
Marche aux Fleurs - Post Impressionist Oil, Figures in Landscape by Marcel Dyf
By Marcel Dyf
Located in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
A charming oil on canvas circa 1960 by sought after French post impressionist painter Marcel Dyf depicting women at a flower market in Arles, France. The stalls are shaded by the lon...
Canvas, Oil