In parallel to the courses Jean Messagier took at the National School of Decorative Arts in Paris from 1942 onwards, the young man from Montbéliarda attended Paul Valéry's poetry classes at the Collège de France with great assiduity.
After the war, he made his first sculptures and undertook a journey that would take him to Tuscany and then to the Algerian coast, crushed by the heat of a blazing sun. Shortly after the first presentation of his work at the Arc-en-ciel gallery in Paris, he became a member of the Salon d'Automne (engraving section) in 1948. Four years later, he contributed to the foundation of the ephemeral Salon d'Octobre, which met twice between 1952 and 1953.
Jean Messagier (1920-1999)
Coeur de printemps
april 1961
Oil on canvas
71,5 x 100 cm
Signed lower right. Signed again, dated and titled on the reverse on the chassis
Provenance : Private collection, France
Result: 10 400 euros
A true ode to nature, air and light, his painting is characterized by generally monochromatic expanses of colour on a vaporous background. The support of the canvas thus becomes a vestige of a gesture that time has put a stop to. In 1962, the artist had the privilege of representing France at the Venice Biennale alongside Alfred Manessier (1911 - 1993) and the Russian painter Serge Poliakoff (1900 - 1969), whom he has been seeing for about ten years.
Emblematic of the artist's relationship with nature, the oil on canvas "Heart of Spring" was painted in April 1961. Sold at the Modern and Contemporary Art sale, it testifies to the artist's energy during his creative process. The titles chosen by Jean Messagier often have a link with the seasons, as in this watercolour on paper, "Les retourneurs d'automne", created around 1965.
Jean Messagier (1920-1999)
Les retourneurs d'automne
circa 1965
Watercolour on paper
68 x 98,2 cm
Signed lower right, titled on the lower edge towards the center
Provenance :
- Birch Gallery, Copenhagen
- Private collection, France.
A certificate from Mr André Schoeller will be provided
Result: 5 850 euros
Other works, such as the "Chien de Goya" (Goya's Dog), sold in May 2019, evoke the painter's taste for the ironic and sarcastic twists and turns of Art History. A committed and politicised artist, Jean Messagier will be an active witness to the cultural and artistic transformation that the events of May 68 will bring to society.
Jean Messagier (1920-1999)
Le chien de Goya, circa 1965
Huile et paillettes sur toile contre-collée sur toile
Signée en bas à droite, titrée en bas au centre
126.5 x 206 cm
Provenance: Galerie Larock-Granoff, Paris
Acquis auprès de cette dernière par l'actuel propriétaire
Result: 18 200 euros
In addition to arousing a real craze among French and international collectors, he has been the object - since his death in 1999 - of keen interest from critics and the public alike. In 2019, the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dole is dedicating an ambitious retrospective to him: "Tous les sexes du Printemps, Jean Messagier, (1920-1999)", curated by Amélie Lavin and François Michau.
