1921 Amiens ‐ 2008 Antibes
“View of Toledo”, 1964
40 x 30 cm
Pencil and watercolour
Contemporary, Up to 5,000 €
Galerie Paffrath
Sold (1,800 €)
The cheerful work “View of Toledo” looks like a snapshot of the Spanish city’s rooftops. With quick brushstrokes, Pruvost colours the various buildings and roofs, while leaving many façades unpainted white. This makes the city appear very bright and friendly.
Pierre Pruvost was a master of watercolour painting and a passionate documenter of life in the south of France. He was born in Amiens in 1921. After completing a classical education in the fine arts, he won the Fénéon Prize in 1951. A year later he received the Abd-el-Tif Prize with a two-year scholarship in the Villa Abd-el-Tif in Algiers. The cities of Kabylie – Béjaïa, Tipasa – and the great south of Algeria inspired him. The vibrant colours in his paintings reveal his talent as a colorist. Its design gives the impression of still images and its complex compositions are reminiscent of Albert Marquet. In 1954 he returned to France to paint his favorite subject: the coast and the ports. In 1950 he exhibited at the Guiot Gallery in Paris with his friend François Desnoyer. From 1955 it was presented by the famous Charpentier Gallery. His lively and colorful painting is expressed in the views of Antibes, the harbor, the lively beach, the bathers and the brightly coloured parasols. Pruvost stayed in Antibes until his death in 2008. The Cagnes Museum honored him in 1993 with a major retrospective. Pruvost’s works are represented in many French public collections.