Francis MEUNIER (1924-1995) - Lot 22

Francis MEUNIER (1924-1995) Untitled Gouache on canvas board Size: 15 x 20 cm (framed) Provenance : Point Rouge Gallery In 1945, Francis Meunier (Cordes 1924 - Albi 1995) met Hans Bellmer in Castres and Tristan Tzara in Toulouse. He also established relationships with Gaston Puel and Adrien Dax. In 1946, he moved to Paris and took part in the activities of the Surrealist group, led by André Breton. For the Exposition Internationale du Surréalisme at Galerie Maeght in 1947, he and Bouvet and Tarnaud created the "Léonie Aubois d'Ashby" alveolus designed by Breton. In the same year, his monumental canvas "L'amour de la liberté", presented at the Salon des Surindépendants, was a landmark in Surrealist participation. A signatory to all the group's texts published at the time, he was one of the eleven "Young Surrealists" in the COMME exhibition presented by Maurice Baskine at Galerie Jean Bard. From 1949 to 1961, Francis Meunier worked as a schoolteacher in Algeria, continuing to paint alone. Back in his native Cordes, Meunier organized exhibitions based on Surrealism, while exploring the techniques of "fumage" and "décalcomanie" and creating a whole "mythography" of Chimères. From 1989 to 1992, he participated in exhibitions in Quebec and Paris.