As part of the Thursday 12 March 2020 auction, PIASA's Jewellery department is offering for sale a selection of pieces created by some of the most emblematic artists of the second half of the 20th century.
François Morellet was born in Cholet in a region where his family took deep roots, from his grandfather Alexis Guérineau, who founded a major toy company, to his father who became sub-prefect of Mayenne. Settling in Paris in 1937, the young man began painting at the age of 14. Once he had passed his baccalaureate, he quickly moved on to study Russian at the School of Oriental Languages.
Immediately after the war, François Morellet joined the family business while continuing his artistic activity. After a first figurative period, he chose to take the steep paths of abstraction from 1950 onwards. The language of his works is geometrical while his aesthetics is distinguished by its simplicity. During a trip to Brazil in 1951, the artist discovered concrete art. During the 1960s, he became one of the major figures of kinetic art within a visual art research group (GRAV) in which five other artists (Francisco Sobrino, Horacio Garcia Rossi, Julio Le Parc, Yvaral and Joël Stein) collaborated.
From 1963 onwards, François Morellet began his work with neon tubes. The works of which he is the author are then characterized by a play with the space in which they are presented. His jewellery is an extension of the aesthetic explorations of his sculptures and installations.
François Morellet (1926-2016)
Grande Broche/Pendentif en argent (925‰) et nielle. Années 1970
Signée, numérotée 12/20, réalisée par Thus Burés, poinçonnée.
Dimensions : 13 x 6 cm
Poids brut : 55,3 g
Dans son écrin d'origine.
Estimation : 4000 / 6000 €
The large brooch presented at this sale is estimated at between 4,000 and 6,000 euros. The importance of geometry is easily discernible. Only 20 pieces of this silver pendant are numbered, and it is offered for sale in its original case. A rare artist to see one of his works exhibited in the Louvre during his lifetime, François Morellet inaugurated L'Esprit d'escalier, a permanent decoration commissioned by the museum. His work can be found in most contemporary art collections in France and abroad.
