Maurice Utrillo (34 works)
Maurice Utrillo (French Maurice Utrillo) (December 25, 1883, Paris - November 5, 1955, Dax) - French landscape painter.
Maurice Utrillo was born on December 25, 1883 in the Montmartre district of Paris. His mother was the model Suzanne Valadon, his father is unknown (according to one version, he was an amateur artist named Boissy). Mother at one time posed for such artists as Auguste Renoir and Berthe Morisot. In 1891, the boy was adopted by the Spanish art critic and writer Miguel Utriyo.
Maurice did not receive a systematic art education, some principles were suggested to him by his mother, and some he picked up from artists who worked in Montmartre. As a result, he began to paint city landscapes, which appealed to the common public, but for a long time remained unrecognized among art historians and critics. In Utrillo's manner one can find features of post-impressionism and primitivism. Until 1906, the artist signed his works as Maurice Valadon, then adopted his stepfather's surname.
Critics began to appreciate Utrillo's work only in the 1910s. In the 1920s, the artist became an international celebrity. In 1929, the French government awarded him the Order of the Legion of Honor. In 1935, Utrillo married Lucy Valor and went with her to the Parisian suburb of Le Vezine. The artist died on November 5, 1955 in Dax, Landes department. He was buried in the Montmartre cemetery of Saint-Vincent.