Derain, Balthus, Giacometti — Une amitié artistique — Musée d’Art Moderne de la ville de Paris — Exhibition — Slash Paris

Past: June 2 → October 29, 2017

Derain Balthus Giacometti — Musée d’Art moderne de Paris Le musée d'Art moderne de la Ville de Paris présente du 2 juin au 29 octobre une exposition exceptionnelle qui réunit, de manière inédite, trois peintres liés par une véritable amitié.

The Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris is presenting a new kind of exhibition exploring the friendship between three major 20th-century artists: André Derain (1880–1954), Balthus (1908–2001) and Alberto Giacometti (1901–1966).

Never before compared in this way, their ways of seeing share the same exigency regarding the nature of the work of art. Driven by a powerful modernist urge, all three were passionately interested in the painting of the past and the art of distant civilisations, fascinated by “the dark forces of matter” (Derain) and, more broadly, marked by an acute attentiveness to the “marvellous, unknown” reality before their eyes (Giacometti). Even more so than the mutual admiration and affection they showed throughout their lives, their profound sense of artistic community is the guiding thread of this exhibition.

On show here is a remarkable selection of over 350 paintings, sculptures, works on paper and photographs, mainly centred on the period between the 1930s and the 1960s. This includes the greater part of the Derain oeuvre, which has not been seen in Paris since the 1995 retrospective at the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris; the most comprehensive view of Balthus since the Centre Pompidou retrospective in 1983; and the opportunity for a fresh look at Giacometti.

Curator: Jacqueline Munck