BIO

Boutet de Monvel was a remarkable painter, engraver, sculptor and fashion illustrator. Fascinated by geometry, simplicity and stylisation, Boutet de Monvel’s illustrative work portrayed solid construction with a geometric line that was closely associated with the Art Deco movement. Pre-World War I Boutet de Monvel’s illustrations featured in Femina, Le Jardin des Modes and Gazette du Bon Ton and between the wars Vogue and Town & Country regularly featured his work, although from 1926 – 1933 Harper’s Bazaar signed him exclusively. Away from illustration, Boutet de Monvel had enjoyed significant attention in the early 1900s as a prominent artist and by the 1930s and 40s his portraits were á la mode. As the art historian Stéphane-Jacques Addade wrote, “He was, in America, the most important painter of the day, the painter of millionaires, like Andy Warhol would be in the ’70s.” Exhibitions included Baltimore Museum of Art (1926) and Museé des Beaux Arts, Paris (1951). Boutet de Monvel died tragically young at just 49 whilst flying over the Azores. Boutet de Monvel sketches were collected by Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé and now make up part of the permanent collection held in the Musée YSL, Marrakech. Sotheby’s, Paris held a celebrated two day sale of his estate in 2016 which raised almost ten million Euros.