André Devambez
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André Victor Édouard Devambez (26 May 1867 – 18 March 1944) was a French painter and illustrator. best-known his whimsical illustrations of children's books and his dramatic paintings of Paris scenes and of early airplanes from a viewpoint high above. He was professor at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, a member of the French Academie des Beaux-Arts, and a Commander of the French
Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...
, but his work is little known today aside from nine paintings found in the
Musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) () is a museum in Paris, France, on the Rive Gauche, Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts railway station built from 1898 to 1900. The museum holds mai ...
, and occasional special exhibitions.


Biography

André Devambez was born on 26 May 1867. His father, Édouard Devambez, was the son of a butcher, who became an engraver. His father met his wife, Catherine Véret, when they were both apprentices in engraving.Faton (2022), pg. 67 In 1870 his parents opened their own studio at
Passage des Panoramas The Passage des Panoramas () is the oldest of the covered passages of Paris, located in the 2nd arrondissement between the Boulevard Montmartre to the north and the Rue Saint-Marc to the south. It is one of the earliest venues of the Parisian p ...
, called the
Maison Devambez Maison Devambez is the name of a fine printer (publisher), printer's firm in Paris. It operated under that name from 1873, when a printing business established by the royal engraver Hippolyte Brasseux in 1826 was acquired by Édouard Devambez. A ...
, which he built into a major publishing house, commissioning and selling engravings and other art. From an early age André wanted to become an artist. His father arranged private lessons with Gabriel Gouray, a former student of
Jean-Léon Gérôme Jean-Léon Gérôme (; 11 May 1824 – 10 January 1904) was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as Academic painting, academicism. His paintings were so widely reproduced that he was "arguably the world's most famous living art ...
, who encouraged the young Devambez to become a history painter. In 1884 took private lessons from
Jules Lefebvre Jules Joseph Lefebvre (; 14 March 183624 February 1911) was a French Painting, painter, educator and theorist. Early life Lefebvre was born in Tournan-en-Brie, Seine-et-Marne, on 14 March 1836. He entered the École nationale supérieure des ...
at the
Académie Julian The () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907). The school was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number and qual ...
. In 1885 he succeeded in the entry examination to the
École des Beaux-arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...
, where he studied with
Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant Jean-Joseph Benjamin-Constant (also known as Benjamin-Constant), born Jean-Joseph Constant (10 June 1845 – 26 May 1902), was a French painter and etcher best known for his Oriental subjects and portraits. Biography Benjamin-Constant was ...
and
Gustave Boulanger Gustave Clarence Rodolphe Boulanger (25 April 1824 – 22 September 1888) was a French figurative painter and academic artist and teacher known for his Classical and Orientalist subjects. Education and career The Néo-Grecs and the Prix de Rom ...
. In 1890, He was awarded the
Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...
for his somber depiction of the
denial of Peter The Denial of Peter (or Peter's Denial) refers to three acts of denial of Jesus by the Apostle Peter as described in all four Gospels of the New Testament. All four Canonical Gospels state that during Jesus's Last Supper with his disciples, he ...
which gave him a position to study and paint for five years at the
Villa Médicis The Villa Medici () is a sixteenth-century Italian Mannerist villa and an architectural complex with 7-hectare Italian garden, contiguous with the more extensive Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in the historic c ...
of Academy in Rome. His studies were interrupted by military service in until November 1892, He resumed his studies in Rome in 1893, when he submitted his required finished work to the Academy, a painting of the Prodigal Son. Devambez purchased a camera and posed in costume for the painting himself. In 1894 he submitted to the Academy a painting of "The Legend of Saint Agatha", with multiple characters in varied poses; then, in 1898, a monumental work depicting "The Conversion of the Madeleine", which obtained for him the Medal of Second Class. In 1900 he married Cécile Richard, the daughter of a chemist from Alsace. They had two children, Pierre and Valentine. In 1899 he was elected a member of the
Société des Artistes Français The Société des Artistes Français (, meaning "Society of French Artists") is the association of French painters and sculptors established in 1881. Its annual exhibition is called the "Salon des artistes français" (not to be confused with the ...
, at whose annual Salon he exhibited, and in 1905 he became a chevalier of the
Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...
. He also began turning his attention to illustrations, and smaller genre works. In 1898 he illustrated a novel by
Emile Zola Emile or Émile may refer to: * Émile (novel) (1827), autobiographical novel based on Émile de Girardin's early life * Emile, Canadian film made in 2003 by Carl Bessai * '' Emile: or, On Education'' (1762) by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a treatise o ...
, "La Fete de Coqueville". In May 1913 he had his first personal exhibition at the gallery of Georges Petit. When the First World War began in 1914, he was too old to be drafted into the army, but volunteered to be a battlefield artist, and to paint camouflage to conceal of army positions in the front lines. On June 3, 1915, at Amiens, he was seriously wounded in the leg and the left eye by an exploding German artillery shell. He spent a long convalescence in the hospital. In August 1915 was awarded the Croix de Guerre for his services. In 1929, he was named head of the painting section at the
École des Beaux-Arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...
, France's most prestigious art school,Biographical notes
@ the Larousse Online.
a position he retained until 1937. He opened the atelier for the first time to women students. That same year, he was elected to Seat #9 at the
Académie des Beaux-Arts The (; ) is a French learned society based in Paris. It is one of the five academies of the . The current president of the academy (2021) is Alain-Charles Perrot, a French architect. Background The academy was created in 1816 in Paris as a me ...
, which he held until his death. IN 1934, he was awarded the unusual position of official painter of the Ministry of Aviation, where he used his art to publicise the growing aviation industry. In the same year he was named a member of the Fine Arts Commission for the 1937 Paris International Exposition; his paintings of the Exposition, made from high above on the Eiffel Tower, gave a striking new perspective to the Exposition. In 1938, he was named a Commander in the Legion of Honor. He died at his home at the Pavillon Raffet at the Villa Adrienne on 18 March 1944, at the age of seventy-seven.


Paintings


Painting Paris and the Parisians

File:André Devambez - La Place Pigalle.jpg, Place Pigalle File:André Devambez - La Charge - 1902-1903 - Musée d'Orsay.jpg, ''La Charge'' (1902–1903),
Musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) () is a museum in Paris, France, on the Rive Gauche, Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts railway station built from 1898 to 1900. The museum holds mai ...
File:André Devambez - La colline de Chaillot pendant l'exposition Internationale de 1937, vue de la Tour Eiffel - P2807 - Musée Carnavalet.jpg, "The Palace of Chaillot during the 1937 International Exposition, see from the Eiffel Tower (1937) File:Colonneconcierto.jpg, Concert by the Colonne Symphony Orchestra
Paris and the Parisians were the subjects most often painted by Devambez, and he often depicted them from an unusual perspective, from above. In his youth he lived in the sixth floor of a building at the corner of boulevard Montmartre and rue Vivienne, and saw the activity and crowds in the Paris streets spread out below him. This was translated into a series of paintings. There are nine of his works in the
Musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) () is a museum in Paris, France, on the Rive Gauche, Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts railway station built from 1898 to 1900. The museum holds mai ...
in Paris, including his best-known painting, ''La Charge''. This dramatic scene, painted in about 1902, is an aerial view of a violent nighttime confrontation as the Paris police broke up a demonstration of labor union workers on strike on the
Boulevard Montmartre The Boulevard Montmartre () is one of the four Boulevards of Paris, grands boulevards of Paris. It was constructed in 1763. Contrary to what its name may suggest, the road is not situated on the hills of Montmartre. It is the easternmost of the g ...
. Ironically, though Devambez was a sympathiser of the strikers, the painting ended up hanging in the office of the Prefect of Police, Chiappe, who had ordered the repression of the strike. In 1937 he received a commission from the Paris International Exposition to paint an aerial view of the new Palace of Chaillot at the Exposition, made from the second level of the
Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower from 1887 to 1889. Locally nicknamed "''La dame de fe ...
. It showing the immense crowd at the Exposition on both sides of the Seine and on the bridge between. The painting also made abundant use of the color blue, which was the official color of the Exposition. It now hangs in the Museum of Fine Arts in Rennes.Faton 2022) p. 35


Aviation and technology

File:Dirigible-Bus-Andre Devambez.jpg, A whimsical "Dirigible-Bus" over Paris (1909) File:André Devambez - Le seul oiseau qui vole au dessus des nuages - 1910 - Musee d'Orsay.jpg, "The only bird which flies above the clouds" (1910),
Musée d'Orsay The Musée d'Orsay ( , , ) () is a museum in Paris, France, on the Rive Gauche, Left Bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, a Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts railway station built from 1898 to 1900. The museum holds mai ...
File:André Devambez - Les avions fantaisistes 1911-1914.jpg, ''Fantastic aircraft'' (1911-1914)
As an artist Devambez was attracted to scenes of modern life and modern technology, particularly aviation. In 1909, he made a colour lithograph of a "Dirigible-Bus", a whimsical imaginary vehicle that combined the features of Paris municipal bus and a balloon. Between 1909 and 1010, he frequented air shows in Paris and other cities, and illustrated the aircraft, sometimes painting them as they would be seen from high above. These illustrations appeared in the popular magazine "L'Illustration", and there publications, while a group was presented at the Paris Salon. In 1910, he was invited to provide twelve decorative panels for the new French Embassy in
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
, He chose the subject of modern inventions, painting the metro, an omnibus, airships, the Paris Metro, ships and aeroplanes. He completed designs for the twelve panels, but due to a financial scandal in another part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the project was left unfinished, and the paintings were not installed. . In 1934 André Devambez was appointed the first official artist to the newly created French Air Ministry. The smaller panels he made survived in the archives of the Ministry. They were finally put into place at the Vienna Embassy in a newly-designed gallery in 1993. One painting of the series is on display in the Musée d’Orsay. Entitled ''Le seul oiseau qui vole au-dessus des nuages'' ("The only bird that flies above the clouds"), it employs a breathtaking downward perspective to show a
biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...
flying above a cloud-mass, with glimpses of the ground far below, and the shadow of the aircraft on the clouds. In addition to painting aircraft, Devambez created illustrations of the new Paris Metro, showing the crowds gathered on the quays, and whimsical cartoons of the earliest automobile shows and races, including the Paris-Berlin automobile race that took place in July 1901.


The First World War

File:Twelve Etchings (Douze eaux-fortes) MET DP874945.jpg, Etching of Front Lines in the First World War (1917) File:Twelve Etchings (Douze eaux-fortes) MET DP874941.jpg, Etching of front lines in the First World War (1917)(
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...
) File:Twelve Etchings (Douze eaux-fortes) MET DP874947.jpg, Front Lines in the First World War (1917) File:Twelve Etchings (Douze eaux-fortes) MET DP874951.jpg, Residents of French town lining up for coal (1917)
When the First World War began in 1914, Devambez was forty-seven years old, too old to be drafted. Nonetheless he volunteered for service as a combat artist and to paint camouflage, and made several trips to the front. On June 3, 1915, he was badly injured by an exploding German shell. His first paintings of the war were based on photographs, and were rather formal. In 1917. he published an album of twelve etchings boded on his experience at the front, which were more dramatic and intimate. The subjects included "Cold", "Shell Holes"; "The fire" "The rain"; "The spy"; "Storms"; "The hostages"; "The reserves"; "Coal"; "The madman" "The Fire:; "Coal" and "Shrapnel". which were his personal views of the war. these were published in an edition of 150 copies in 1915. He often depicted the scenes as viewed from high above.


Portraits

File:André Devambez - Les Incompris 1903-1904.jpg, "The misunderstanding" (1903-1904) File:André Devambez - La lecture.jpg, "Reading", his daughter Valentine and son Pierre (1914) File:André Devambez - Pierre et Valentine.jpg, His children, Valentine and Pierre (1925)


Lithographs - The Parisians

File:DevambezLafayette.jpg, Lithograph of toys at
Galeries Lafayette Galeries Lafayette () is an upmarket French department store chain, the biggest in Europe. Its flagship store is on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris but it now operates a number of locations in France and other countries ...
department store (1907) File:DevambezHeuredepointe.jpg, "Waiting for the Metro" (1910) (Lithograph enhanced with Guache and water colors) File:(Albi) Une première au théâtre Montmartre (1901) André Devambez Lithographie couleur.jpg, "Premiere at the Montmartre Theater (1901) (Colored Lithograph)


The "Tout-Petits" and "Ulysses and Calypso"

File:Devambez- Fete of the Fairies.jpg, "The Fete of the Fairies" (1922) File:Devambez - Ulysses and Calypso.jpg, "Ulysses and Calypso" (1936) The "Tout-Petits" are a genre of very small paintings made by Devambez, which usually illustrated an anecdote or joke. They were generally only a few dozen centimetres in size, and sometimes were set in very elaborate frames, and became a kind of display object, between a sculpture and a painting. In 1936, during the Great Depression, he faced some financial difficulties, and reverted to his earlier style to produce a large and highly decorative work, full of symbolism and color, on the Classical Greek theme of Ulysses and Calypso. It was purchased by the Museum of the Petit Palais.Picture caption at the Devambez exhibition, the Petit Palais, December 2022


Book Illustration

File:L'Illustration - Noël 1911 p 34.jpg, Engraving from "Gullver's Travels" (1911) in "Illustration" File:Devambez - Gulliver.jpg, "Gulliver Steals the Fleet of the Big-Enders", Illustration from "Gulliver's Travels" (1921) File:L'Illustration - Noël 1911 p 37.jpg, Image from "Gulliver's Travels" in "Illustration" (1911) André Devambez provided illustrations for books and magazines. ''Auguste a Mauvais Caractère'' (Devambez, 1913) was a children's book, with André's own illustrations hand-coloured by the master of
stencil Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object. The holes allow the pigment to reach only some parts of the surface creatin ...
technique,
Jean Saudé Jean Saudé was a French printmaker in Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in ...
; the original illustrations were exhibited the following year at the
Palais de Glace The Palais de Glace () is a rumeno style Belle Époque building in the Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Located at 1430 Posadas street, it was modelled on the Théâtre du Rond-Point, Palais des Glaces in ...
. This was the first of a number of children's books, including ''Histoire de la petite Tata et du Gros Patapouf'' and ''Les Aventures du Capitaine Mille-Sabords'', nos. 8 and 9 in a series of undated stories issued in concertina format "Chez l’auteur". These children's stories were probably intended for the amusement of his son, Pierre Devambez (1902–1980) and his daughter Valentine (1907-?). His son became an archeologist and later became curator of Greek and Roman antiquities at the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...
, Books illustrated by André Devambez include ''La Fête à Coqueville'' by
Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, ; ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of Naturalism (literature), naturalism, and an important contributor to ...
(, 1899); ''Le Poilu a Gagné la Guerre'' by Charles Le Goffic (1919); and ''Les Condamnés à Mort'' by
Claude Farrère Claude Farrère (), pseudonym of Frédéric-Charles Bargone (; 27 April 1876, in Lyon – 21 June 1957, in Paris), was a French Navy officer and writer. Many of his novels are based in exotic locations such as Istanbul, Saigon, or Nagasaki. On ...
(Édouard-Joseph & L’Illustration, 1920). He also contributed illustrations to ''Le Figaro Illustré'', ''
Le Rire ''Le Rire'' (, "Laughter") was a successful French humor magazine published from October 1894 until its final issue in April 1971. Founded in Paris during the Belle Époque by Felix Juven, ''Le Rire'' appeared as typical Parisians began to ach ...
'', and ''
L'Illustration ''L'Illustration'' (; 1843–1944) was a French language, French illustrated weekly newspaper published in Paris. It was founded by Édouard Charton with the first issue published on 4 March 1843, it became the first illustrated newspaper in ...
''. A retrospective of his work was held at the Musée de
Beauvais Beauvais ( , ; ) is a town and Communes of France, commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise Departments of France, département, in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, north of Paris. The Communes of France, commune o ...
in 1988. A large exposition of his paintings and illustrations was held at the museum of art of the City of Paris at the
Petit Palais The (; ) is an art museum in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. Built for the Exposition Universelle (1900), 1900 Exposition Universelle ("universal exhibition"), it now houses the City of Paris Museum of Fine Arts (''Musée des beaux-arts ...
in 2022.


References


Bibliography (in French)

* Faton, Jeanne, Director of Publication, "André Devambez, Vertiges de l'Imagination", L'Objet d'Art - Hors-Série, December 2022 (in French) * Noémie Bertrand and Michel Ménégoz, "André Devambez, 1867-1944", exhibition catalog, 4 June-4 July 1992, Ville de
Neuilly-Plaisance Neuilly-Plaisance () is a commune in Seine-Saint-Denis, ÃŽle-de-France. It is considered part of the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. The composer Alain Margoni was born in Neuilly-Plaisance on 13 Octo ...
, 1992


External links


ArtNet: More works by Devambez

Guerre en Dessin- André Devambez" (in French)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Devambez, Andre 1867 births 1944 deaths 19th-century French painters French male painters 20th-century French painters 20th-century French male artists Painters from Paris Members of the Académie des beaux-arts French engravers French children's book illustrators Prix de Rome for painting 20th-century French printmakers 19th-century French male artists