Roger Marcel Limouse
Collo, Algeria, 1894 - Parigi, 1990
Limouse made his debut at the Salon des artistes français in 1924, sending a large nude; meanwhile, he approached Cubist research and made contact with the Fauves group. In 1928 he exhibited at Galerie Naudette and in 1933 at Galerie Simpson. The same year he received the Wikings Prize at the Salon, where the jury was composed of famous artists-Raoul Dufy, Van Dongen, André Lhote. The same year he becomes a member of the Salon d'Automne. In 1948 he is appointed professor at the School of Fine Arts in Paris and will hold the position until 1964.
He was born in Algeria to French parents. By family tradition he is destined for technical studies but, attracted to painting since childhood, he decides to become an artist and, in 1919, moves to Paris where he enters the Académie Julian.
To improve himself, he attended the painting atelier of the Laurens brothers, where Albert in particular took an interest in him. The latter's teaching, less strict than his brother's and based especially on drawing and composition, constitutes an excellent discipline for Limouse, who proves instead to have a greater aptitude for color and matter.
He frequents the Montparnasse circles, the ateliers, and the cafes where artist friends gather, but it is the picturesque life of his home country, the markets, the light, the colors, and the Mediterranean Sea that subsist in his memory as a primary source of inspiration.
Limouse made his debut at the Salon des artistes français in 1924 by sending a large nude; meanwhile, he approached Cubist research and made contact with the Fauves group. In 1928 he exhibited at Galerie Naudette and in 1933 at Galerie Simpson. The same year he received the Wikings Prize at the Salon, where the jury consisted of famous artists-Raoul Dufy, Van Dongen, André Lhote. The same year he becomes a member of the Salon d'Automne.
He begins a series of travels that take him to Norway, Spain, Italy, North Africa where he rediscovers memories of his youth. This is the beginning of important compositions on Morocco, in which the palette lightens. He works extensively on the still life theme, which he will continue steadily throughout his career.
In 1936 he exhibited at the Musée du Pétit Palais, in 1937 at Galerie Druet, in 1941 at Galerie Berry-Raspail, and at Galerie Saint Germain des Prés in 1943. The same year he illustrated the poems of Anna Noailles for Editions Balzac. In 1948 he was appointed professor at the School of Fine Arts in Paris and would hold the position until 1964.
He often traveled to the Midi of France during the summer, mainly to Menton, and these sojourns provided him with the opportunity to paint lively beach scenes; during the Carnival period he devoted himself instead to picturesque and joyful canvases.
In 1957, with the group "Les peintres de la Réalité poétique," he exhibited in Switzerland, in La Tour de Peilz; the success of the exhibition brought the group international recognition from critics and the public. Among these painters, Limose represents the most outgoing temperament, the most intensely passionate about bright colors.
From 1966 to 1969 he stayed in Madagascar, where he began a series of studies of earthly phenomena that led him to paint volcanoes (resumed later, in the 1970s).
From Sept. 16 to Nov. 19, 2006, the Grosvenor Museum in Chester will hold the exhibition "Baudelaire and Limouse" to draw parallels between the painter and the poet. Limouse in fact particularly loved and drew inspiration from the poems in the collection "The Flowers of Evil."
Museums where his works are kept:
Algiers, Algeria
Montpellier (Musée Fabre), Paris (Musée National d'Art Modene de la Ville), Menton, France
Tossa de Mar (Museu Municipal), Spain
Chester, Great Britain
Bibliography:
R. Nacenta, La Scuola di Parigi, Istituto Geografico de Agostini, Novara, 1960; Limouse, La Feerie de la couleur, Presses des art graphiques d’Acquitaine à Libourne, 1976; R. Bouillot, Les Peintres de la realité poetique, Galerie J.P. Joubert, Paris, 1987; L. Harambourg, L’Ecole de Paris, 1945-1965, Neuchâtel, Ides & Calendes, 1993; M. Wolpert & J. Winter, Modern Figurative Paintings, The Paris Connection, Atglen, A Schiffer Book, 2004
To improve himself, he attended the painting atelier of the Laurens brothers, where Albert in particular took an interest in him. The latter's teaching, less strict than his brother's and based especially on drawing and composition, constitutes an excellent discipline for Limouse, who proves instead to have a greater aptitude for color and matter.
He frequents the Montparnasse circles, the ateliers, and the cafes where artist friends gather, but it is the picturesque life of his home country, the markets, the light, the colors, and the Mediterranean Sea that subsist in his memory as a primary source of inspiration.
Limouse made his debut at the Salon des artistes français in 1924 by sending a large nude; meanwhile, he approached Cubist research and made contact with the Fauves group. In 1928 he exhibited at Galerie Naudette and in 1933 at Galerie Simpson. The same year he received the Wikings Prize at the Salon, where the jury consisted of famous artists-Raoul Dufy, Van Dongen, André Lhote. The same year he becomes a member of the Salon d'Automne.
He begins a series of travels that take him to Norway, Spain, Italy, North Africa where he rediscovers memories of his youth. This is the beginning of important compositions on Morocco, in which the palette lightens. He works extensively on the still life theme, which he will continue steadily throughout his career.
In 1936 he exhibited at the Musée du Pétit Palais, in 1937 at Galerie Druet, in 1941 at Galerie Berry-Raspail, and at Galerie Saint Germain des Prés in 1943. The same year he illustrated the poems of Anna Noailles for Editions Balzac. In 1948 he was appointed professor at the School of Fine Arts in Paris and would hold the position until 1964.
He often traveled to the Midi of France during the summer, mainly to Menton, and these sojourns provided him with the opportunity to paint lively beach scenes; during the Carnival period he devoted himself instead to picturesque and joyful canvases.
In 1957, with the group "Les peintres de la Réalité poétique," he exhibited in Switzerland, in La Tour de Peilz; the success of the exhibition brought the group international recognition from critics and the public. Among these painters, Limose represents the most outgoing temperament, the most intensely passionate about bright colors.
From 1966 to 1969 he stayed in Madagascar, where he began a series of studies of earthly phenomena that led him to paint volcanoes (resumed later, in the 1970s).
From Sept. 16 to Nov. 19, 2006, the Grosvenor Museum in Chester will hold the exhibition "Baudelaire and Limouse" to draw parallels between the painter and the poet. Limouse in fact particularly loved and drew inspiration from the poems in the collection "The Flowers of Evil."
Museums where his works are kept:
Algiers, Algeria
Montpellier (Musée Fabre), Paris (Musée National d'Art Modene de la Ville), Menton, France
Tossa de Mar (Museu Municipal), Spain
Chester, Great Britain
Bibliography:
R. Nacenta, La Scuola di Parigi, Istituto Geografico de Agostini, Novara, 1960; Limouse, La Feerie de la couleur, Presses des art graphiques d’Acquitaine à Libourne, 1976; R. Bouillot, Les Peintres de la realité poetique, Galerie J.P. Joubert, Paris, 1987; L. Harambourg, L’Ecole de Paris, 1945-1965, Neuchâtel, Ides & Calendes, 1993; M. Wolpert & J. Winter, Modern Figurative Paintings, The Paris Connection, Atglen, A Schiffer Book, 2004
