Aristide Maillol

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French artist, a painter, sculptor and book illustrator who did monumental studies of the nude female form. While his works are not widely known, they can be seen in most great art museums around the world, and he is considered one of the most important sculptors of the 20th century. Maillol began drawing as a child, and eventually he obtained a State grant and headed to Paris where he attended the School of Beaux-Arts. He began by painting landscapes, but in 1897, he almost gave up painting to design tapestries. Instead, he tried woodcarving and produced some ceramic works. In 1899, he met Picasso, and in 1900, impressed by the works of Gauguin, he became a member of the Nabis (Hebrew for ‘prophet’), a group of artists who turned away from symbolism, instead striving for pure form. In 1900-01, he began sculpting, and he soon discovered a passion for the female nude that consumed him from that time on. In the first of many exhibits during his prolific career, Maillol showed his works at the Vollard Gallery in 1902 and then exhibited at the Salon d’Automne two years later. In 1905, he became friends with Matisse. Almost all of his sculptures depict the mature female form; however, the "Cyclist," 1907-08 was a notable exception and greatly influenced the future of expressionistic sculpture. By 1910, Maillol was internationally famous and was constantly flooded by commissions. During the 1920s and 1930s, he did woodcut illustrations for fine editions of Latin poetry. Maillol began sculpting due to eye disease when he was 40 years old. He died on 5 October 1944 following a road accident near his home, Banyuls-sur-Mer. Link to Wikipedia biography