HUBERT CLERISSI (1923-2000) Lot n° 66

Monaco, Port Hercule Suite of two color lithographs on paper, signed in pencil lower right, one marked E.A. for Epreuve d'Artiste, the other marked E.A. numbered 41/50. Provenance : Clerissi Collection. Dimensions: 50 x 42 and 42 x 57 cm at sight Hubert Clerissi was eleven years old when the painter Jean-Gabriel Domergue, then in great vogue, made him the winner of a local exhibition by declaring: "Bravo to this young talent who has shown us a work of such original workmanship. However, at the end of his studies, it is in an architect's office that he starts without stopping however to exert his talent of watercolorist. He participated in the first and second edition of the Salon Monégasque, in 1950, where Maurice Utrillo, President of the Salon, awarded him the first prize. The works of this period are characterized by a rejection of the objective contour and imposed structures, but always with a concern of organization of the fiured elements, halfway between the Fauves and the painters of the "School of Paris". Then, the young artist's talent became apparent and during an exhibition organized by the Principality's Tourism Department, the twelve paintings hanging on the walls were sold! Exhibitions multiplied: Monte Carlo, Paris, San Remo and Turin. During this period, Clérissi exalted the spontaneity of his work, emphasizing it with a network of almost aggressive lines, until he reached a kind of expressionism that was both dramatic and stripped down. Meanwhile, the work of the In the meantime, the work of the Monegasque painter is extraordinarily successful and conquers collectors from all over the world, starting with the princely family of Monaco who noticed him from the beginning. Prizes, awards and decorations will naturally mark out naturally mark out this course. It is in the exercise of his art that this Monegasque painter has honored his step. For more than 50 years, his works have given us his personal vision of the Monaco of yesterday and today of today, his works with such a recognizable style are now part of the Monegasque artistic heritage.