Raoul Dufy, SNCF Normandy, 1954, Original lithographic poster

Raoul Dufy : Brother of artist Jean Dufy, Raoul was born in 1877 in Le Havre where he spent his childhood. Fine Arts school student, he works in Paris since 1900, showing art fisrt an interest in impressionist and postimpressionist artists. Dufy works with Albert Marquet at Fécamp, Trouville and Le Havre. 1905 marks for him an evolution toward a new painting. The discovery of Matisse's "Luxe, calme et volupté" (1904) is at that time a revelation of his rupture from impressionism ("Jeanne in the flowers", 1907). Around 1909, his work becomes lighter, adding grace and humor ("The bois de Boulogne", 1909). The artist also reveales himself in the illustration of litterary works as "Bestiaire d'Orphée" by Apollinaire in 1910. He also shows interest in decorative art and creates a textile decoration compagny with Paul Poiret in 1911. After the second World War, his painting reachs his final style, characterized by a sharp drawing, pure colors with arbitrary contour, generally representing a crowd on tint areas of bright colors ("Race in Epson", 1935). After the war the artist pratice more and more watercolor and the end of his life leads his work toward a greatest starkness ("The red violin", 1948). In 1952, Dufy won The International Grand Prize of Painting at the XXVIth Venice Biennale, he died the following year.