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Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Spanish painter, who is widely acknowledged to be the most important artist of the 20th century. A long-lived and highly prolific artist, he experimented with a wide range of styles and themes throughout his career. Among Picasso’s many contributions to the history of art, his most important include pioneering the modern art movement called cubism, inventing collage as an artistic technique, and developing assemblage (constructions of various materials) in sculpture.

Picasso was born Pablo Ruiz in Málaga, Spain. He later adopted his mother’s more distinguished maiden name—Picasso—as his own. Though Spanish by birth, Picasso lived most of his life in France.

Joan Miro was born in Barcelona in 1893.

Although it is generally accepted that Miro was part of the surrealist movement, his work derived its influence from multiple sources. His works from before 1920 show the pure and brilliant colours of Fauvism, shapes taken from cubism, influences from folkloric Catalan art and Roman frescos from the churches.

Miro studied at La Lonja school of fine arts in Barcelona in 1918.In 1920 Miro visited Paris where he became a member of the surrealist movement. His first exhibition was in 1921 at the La Licorne gallery. In 1928 along with a group of surrealists, Miro exhibited at the Pierre gallery. From the late 1920s early 1930s Miro became more involved in producing surrealist sculptures and this was a decade that saw his ‘tormented monsters’. Miro exeperimented with many artistic methods, including engraving, lithography, water colors, pastels, and painting over copper.

Miro's work may be described as being his coloured 'handwriting' on canvas. Miro himself describes it as "When I begin to paint, I don't plan to do a bird, a woman, or a precise object. Sometimes, an object appears, as in the Three birds in space. There are three birds here, but I didn't realize it until I saw them."(The titles? I invent them, sometimes to amuse myself, when I finish a painting. It is the painting that suggests the titles, and not the titles that suggest a painting...)" "The last works are three large blue canvases. I spent a lot of time on them - not on painting, but on thinking about them. It took an enormous effort, an incredible inner tension to reach the core that I was seeking. The preliminary phase was intellectual...it was like celebrating a religious rite, like taking vows. Do you know how Japanese bowmen prepare for contests? They start by placing themselves in position and concentrating; they breathe out, in, out. It's the same thing for me."

Miro on his technique: "First of all, after thinking and thinking for a long time, when to decide to paint, I start by preparing my backgrounds; it's the backgrounds that suggest the graphic design for me. Sometimes I use the ground of the material I am working on. Then I start to draw with charcoal, extremely precisely (I get to work at the crack of dawn). In the afternoon, I just look at what I've drawn. The rest of the day, I prepare myself mentally; and finally, I start to paint. When I paint, I try to determine a relationship between the strokes and the colours, a balance that gives life and that lives in terms of that relationship. Thus, on a black, I can put blue and red tones that have sculptural and poetic meaning, in order to give life and colour to that black. All the things in the painting are organised to meet the demand for balance, and every part is linked in a precise relationship. One thing leads me, almost automatically, to do another, in a sequence that is not only that of balance, but also of rythm: the picture then becomes a play of rythms, like poetry, with shapes and colours instead of words and verses.""I like to speak in lines - strokes - and colours. A line, a colour - a woman; a line, a colour - a bird. It is the drawing and the painting that, by means of a symbol, suggest the idea of the woman and the idea of the bird." Awakening at dawn (constellations) Miro's expression is of lines and colours, a poetry and joy of living. The pure colours and structure betray his artistic sensibilities. The most recurrent symbol here is the stars.

Joan Miro died in Palma de Mallorca in 1983.

b. 1887, Vitebsk, Russia; d. 1985, Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France

Marc Chagall was born July 7, 1887, in Vitebsk, Russia. From 1907 to 1910, he studied in Saint Petersburg, at the Imperial Society for the Protection of the Arts and later with Léon Bakst. In 1910, he moved to Paris, where he associated with Guillaume Apollinaire and Robert Delaunay and encountered Fauvism [more] and Cubism [more]. He participated in the Salon des Indépendants and the Salon d’Automne in 1912. His first solo show was held in 1914 at Der Sturm gallery in Berlin.

Chagall visited Russia in 1914, and was prevented from returning to Paris by the outbreak of war. He settled in Vitebsk, where he was appointed Commissar for Art in 1918. He founded the Vitebsk Popular Art School and directed it until disagreements with the Suprematists resulted in his resignation in 1920. He moved to Moscow and executed his first stage designs for the State Jewish Chamber Theater there. After a sojourn in Berlin, Chagall returned to Paris in 1923 and met Ambroise Vollard. His first retrospective took place in 1924 at the Galerie Barbazanges-Hodebert, Paris. During the 1930s, he traveled to Palestine, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland, and Italy. In 1933, the Kunsthalle Basel held a major retrospective of his work.

During World War II, Chagall fled to the United States. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, gave him a retrospective in 1946. He settled permanently in France in 1948 and exhibited in Paris, Amsterdam, and London. During 1951, he visited Israel and executed his first sculptures. The following year, the artist traveled in Greece and Italy. During the 1960s, Chagall continued to travel widely, often in association with large-scale commissions he received. Among these were windows for the synagogue of the Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, installed in 1962; a ceiling for the Paris Opéra, installed in 1964; a window for the United Nations building, New York, installed in 1964; murals for the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, installed in 1967; and windows for the cathedral in Metz, France, installed in 1968. An exhibition of the artist’s work from 1967 to 1977 was held at the Musée du Louvre, Paris, in 1977–78, and a major retrospective was held at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 1985. Chagall died March 28, 1985, in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France

b. 1898, Lawnton, Pa.; d. 1976, New York City

Alexander Calder was born July 22, 1898, in Lawnton, Pennsylvania, into a family of artists. In 1919, he received an engineering degree from Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken. Calder attended the Art Students League, New York, from 1923 to 1926, studying briefly with Thomas Hart Benton and John Sloan, among others. As a freelance artist for the National Police Gazette in 1925, he spent two weeks sketching at the circus; his fascination with the subject dates from this time. He also made his first sculpture in 1925; the following year he made several constructions of animals and figures with wire and wood. Calder’s first exhibition of paintings took place in 1926 at the Artist’s Gallery, New York. Later that year, he went to Paris and attended the Académie de la Grande Chaumière. In Paris, he met Stanley William Hayter, exhibited at the 1926 Salon des Indépendants, and in 1927 began giving performances of his miniature circus. The first show of his wire animals and caricature portraits was held at the Weyhe Gallery, New York, in 1928. That same year, he met Joan Miró, who became his lifelong friend. Subsequently, Calder divided his time between France and the United States. In 1929, the Galerie Billiet gave him his first solo show in Paris. He met Frederick Kiesler, Fernand Léger, and Theo van Doesburg and visited Piet Mondrian’s studio in 1930. Calder began to experiment with abstract sculpture at this time and in 1931 and 1932 introduced moving parts into his work. These moving sculptures were called “mobiles”; the stationary constructions were to be named “stabiles.” He exhibited with the Abstraction-Création group in Paris in 1933. In 1943, the Museum of Modern Art, New York, gave him a solo exhibition.

During the 1950s, Calder traveled widely and executed Towers (wall mobiles) and Gongs (sound mobiles). He won the Grand Prize for Sculpture at the 1952 Venice Biennale. Late in the decade, the artist worked extensively with gouache; from this period, he executed numerous major public commissions. In 1964–65, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, presented a Calder retrospective. He began the Totems in 1966 and the Animobiles in 1971; both are variations on the standing mobile. A Calder exhibition was held at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, in 1976. Calder died November 11, 1976, in New York.

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Melanie was raised and has spent most of her life in Southern California. She won her first National Art Competition at age 12 and studied with several celebrated artists. Melanie graduated from the UCLA School of Art and taught art in the Los Angeles City Schools. In 1980 she started her own publishing company and has published a series of art chronicling America by depicting famous streets and famous events. She continues to work and recently her artwork has been licensed to Warner Bros., The Walt Disney Corporation and Hanna-Barbera.

Melanie Taylor Kent is one of the most treasured and collected painters living and painting today. In just a few years she has achieved recognition as "the artist of famous celebrations, streets, and landmarks of America". She combines her art talent and love of history with a whimsical imagination to produce images of brilliant and vivid colors, yet informative because of Melanie's attention to detail and quest for authenticity. Melanie's serigraphs are noted for the famous personalities that delight and challenge collectors to identify them. Melanie was the first artist to be licensed by the Walt Disney Company to portray Disney theme parks in limited edition prints. Melanie has been selected as the official artist of the LA Dodgers and the 30th anniversary of Dodger Stadium. Melanie was selected as the official artist of the 50th anniversary of "The Wizard of Oz", the 15th anniversary of "Star Wars" and the 10th anniversary of "E.T.". Melanie's depiction of the 1984 Olympics, "Let the Games Begin", was licensed by the US Olympic Committee. Most of Kent's limited edition works are done as serigraphs, utilizing as many as 200 separate color plates and heavy,acid free archival papers. The production values complement these terrific works, which are collected worldwide.

Wooster Scott, Jane
American

Raised in Eastern Pennsylvania, Jane Wooster Scott grew up between picturesque Bucks County and the surrounding Dutch communities. Her earliest recollections go back to the section of that country which, even in the 1940’s retained glimmerings of the era in which she paints. For 15 years, her paintings have summoned memories of a national heritage-the traditions, holidays and customs of an innocent and energetic young America. When asked why a modern woman living in Los Angeles would devote her career to a bygone era, Wooster Scott says it is her deep love for Americana. Today, she travels throughout New England seeking inspiration for the pastoral vistas and old buildings. She photographs what she sees to recapture them later on canvas. However, few of her paintings are real, existing scenes. They are compositions drawn from her personal thoughts and emotions. She has been exhibiting her work in Los Angles and New York and most of her shows have completely sold out on opening night. Among her collectors are Aaron Spelling, Sylvester Stallone and Marlon Brando. Her works hang in American embassies around the world and are part of the permanent White House collection.

Lyon, France, 1917 - 1985

ESTABLISHED French PAINTER and GRAPHICH ARTIST Phillipe de Noyeŕs stylised images featuring the material luxury and ephemera surrounding early 20th century high society have an ART DECO feel. The luminosity in his works comes from a technique he discovered and perfected in which he avoids white in favor of pure colors.

DeNoyer began his artistic training at the Ecole des Roches, before joining Academy of Fine Art in Lyon and later the Paul Colin school in Paris. DeNoyer emerged on the Paris art scene in 1943, when he met Emmanuel David, the art dealer responsible for putting the Paris School on the international art map.

Phillip DeNoyer became a renowned portrait artist of Paris and London high society. He was also commissioned to paint American stars including Elizabeth Taylor, Dinah Shore and Jean Wallace.

More than 2000 of DeNoyer,s works can be found in museums and public and private collections worldwide

Victor Vasarely (1906-1997)

Internationally recognized as one of the most important artists of the 20th century. He is the acknowledged leader of the Op Art movement, and his innovations in color and optical illusion have had a strong influence on many modern artists.

In 1947, Vasarely discovered his place in abstract art. Influenced by his experiences at Breton Beach of Belle Isle, he concluded that "internal geometry" could be seen below the surface of the entire world. He conceived that form and color are inseparable. "Every form is a base for color, every color is the attribute of a form." Forms from nature were thus transposed into purely abstract elements in his paintings. Recognizing the inner geometry of nature, Vasarely wrote, "the ellipsoid form...will slowly, but tenaciously, take hold of the surface, and become its raison d'etre. Henceforth, this ovoid form will signify in all my works of this period, the 'oceanic feeling'...I can no longer admit an inner world and another, an outer world, apart. The within and the without communicate by osmosis, or, one might rather say: the spatial-material universe, energetic-living, feeling-thinking, form a whole, indivisible...The languages of the spirit are but the supervibrations of the great physical nature."

Vasarely was born in Pecs, Hungary in 1906. After receiving his baccalaureate degree in 1925, he began studying art at the Podolini-Volkmann Academy in Budapest. In 1928, he transferred to the Muhely Academy, also known as the Budapest Bauhaus, where he studied with Alexander Bortnijik. At the Academy, he became familiar with the contemporary research in color and optics by Jaohannes Itten, Josef Albers, and the Constructivists Malevich and Kandinsky.

After his first one-man show in 1930, at the Kovacs Akos Gallery in Budapest, Vasarely moved to Paris. For the next thirteen years, he devoted himself to graphic studies. His lifelong fascination with linear patterning led him to draw figurative and abstract patterned subjects, such as his series of harlequins, checkers, tigers, and zebras. During this period, Vasarely also created multi-dimensional works of art by super-imposing patterned layers of cellophane on one another to attain the illusion of depth.

In 1943, Vasarely began to work extensively in oils, creating both abstract and figurative canvases. His first Parisian exhibition was the following year at the Galerie Denise Rene which he helped found. Vasarely became the recognized leader of the avant-garde group of artists affiliated with the gallery.

In 1955, Galerie Denise Rene hosted a major group exhibition in connection with Vasarely's painting experiments with movement. This was the first important exhibition of kinetic art and included works by Yaacov Agam, Pol Bury, Soto, and Jean Tinguely, among others.

During the 1950's, Vasarely wrote a series of manifestos on the use of optical phenomena for artistic purposes. Together with his paintings, these were a significant influence on younger artists. According to the artist, "In the last analysis, the picture-object in pure composition appears to me as the last link in the family 'paintings,' still possessing by its shining beauty, an end in itself. But it is already more than a painting, the forms and colors which compose it are still situated on the plane, but the plastic event which they trigger fuses in front of and in the plane. It is thereby an end, but also a beginning, a kind of launching pad for future achievements."

Salvador Dalí (1904-1989), Spanish painter, writer, filmmaker, and designer, and one of the leading figures in the surrealist movement.

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