GENEVA.- Artvera's, the modern art gallery located in the heart of the old town of Geneva, offers once more this autumn a new major exhibition. In the six extraordinary rooms, it celebrates a Master of lyrical Abstraction, member of the « Nouvelle Ecole de Paris », Gérard Schneider. Bringing together forty paintings and works on paper, all created between 1945 and 1975, which were the grand years of the artist. Most of them were never exhibited before and they come from important international private collections! This event allows the visitors to discover or rediscover a prominent artistic personality of the art history of the XX° century.
Gérard Schneider, one of the masters of lyrical abstraction
It is a twenty year old Swiss that leaves to study at the « Beaux Arts » in Paris. And finally settles there. During this after-war period, Schneider plays a key role in art history and becomes one of the greatest international Masters of lyrical Abstraction, who took off, under the creative and innovative impulsion of a few artists, Gérard Schneider being one of them.
In 1955, Herta Wescher, art critic, describes his works in thèse words: "Powerful, controlled painting to the extent that at every step of completion the entire design is asserted, surprising, because the final state continuously retains the virulence of the creative act. Acting as a vehement improvisation, this painting hides the most conscientious arrangement of elements, the most sévère control of rapports. Based on color, it starts, however, with linear motifs, but the line has evolved into broad two-hand wide brushstrokes. Obviously, such writing outgrows Small frames, and it is by filling larger frames that it brings us the assertion of its sovereign force… »
Artevera’s presents for the first time, and this thanks to the precious help of Mrs Loïs Schneider, one of the largest creations of Gérard Schneider, which is almost four meters long !
With Gérard Schneider, Artvera’s pays a glowing tribute to lyrical Abstraction. If this exhibition demonstrates that the work of Gérard Schneider wins the recognition as being one of the fathers of lyrical Abstraction, it has to be said that with Pierre Soulages, Hans Hartung and Georges Mathieua among others, lyrical abstraction is an emblematic aesthetic movement that vindicates perfectly the great international attention which it has always obtained by collectors and museum conservators.
Artvera's publishes a new book dedicated to Gérard Schneider
The new book especially edited by the Gallery to go along with the exhibition, allows the reader to enter the painter’ universe through a full and complete analysis of the whole stylistic path of the painter. It contains a rich critical text by Mr Patrick-Gilles Persin, art critic and co-author of the forthcoming catalogue raisonné on the artist. All the painting and graphic works displayed at Artvera's are reproduced in full-page colour.
Gérard Schneider was born in 1896, in Sainte-Croix, in the Swiss Jura. He came to Paris in 1916 and studied at the Ecole Nationale Suérieure des Art Décoratifs (National School of Decorative Arts), and then, with Fernand Cormon, at the Ecole Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (National School of Fine Arts).
He settles in Paris in 1922. At the end of the 1930’s, he meets Picasso, and then, during the war, follows the teachings of Gurdjieff.
Exhibits his work since 1920, at the end of 1940, he becomes one of the masters of Lyric abstraction and since then exhibits regularly in Europe, USA and Japan. He multiplies retrospective exhibitions abroad. He participates more than once in the Venice Biennale, the one in Sao Paulo, the Documenta and also in numerous prestigious international exhibitions.
He is awarded the Grand Prix Lissone (Italy), and the one of the city of Tokyo and the Médaille de Vermeil (Medal of Vermeil) of the city of Paris. Many monographs were devoted to him in France and abroad.
He dies in Paris, in 1986.
He gets naturalized French in 1948, he is bearer of the Legion of Honour and was awarded in 1975, the Grand Prix National des Arts (National Grand Prize for Arts).
Artvera’s maintains the High standard of its exhibitions
After its last important show Mediterranean Colours, which generated the greatest interest and received a deeply positive response of both the public and the press, the Artvera’s Gallery offers a new headlight hanging worthy of a museum presentation. This major exhibition follows in the footsteps of the Serge Charchoune one presented in 2009.
