George Braque was born in Argenteuil in 1882. At the age of eight his familymoved to Le Havre where he continued studying and took evening classes at thetown’s art school.

At 18 he went to Paris where one of his father’s friends employed him as anapprentice painter-decorator. He found lodging in Montmartre and took drawinglessons with the local county council. After accomplishing his military servicein le Havre he settled down permanently in Paris and enrolled in an art courseat the Humbert Adcademy where he met Francis Picabia and Marie Laurencin. In1904 he found himself a studio. His friendship with Othon Friesz, who, likehimself came from Le Havre, attracted him to the Fauvist movement. In 1906Braque moved to a region in Marseille called l’Estaque where he decisivelyjoined the Fauvist movement. He exhibited a number of his works which were soldat the “Independents Show”. Encouraged by his recent successes Braque returnedto le Midi and in October 1907 he signed a contract in Paris with an art dealerKahnweiler. The latter introduced him to Apollinaire who turn introduced him toPicasso who, at that time was working in his studio at Bateau-Lavoir . “TheYoung Ladies of Avignon” was a revelation to Braque. His graphic work started in1907-1908 with Cubist etchings. (Published by Maeght).

Back once again in le Midi Braque’s style developed. He decomposed space intogeometric compact masses using a palette of dark colours. The works that he hadintended to exhibit at the autumn show were refused! He exhibited them at hisown exhibition at the Kahnweiler Gallery at the end of 1908. It was on thisoccasion that the word “Cube” was first used (by the critic Louis Vauxcelles).

A strong friendship between Braque and Picasso led to a close collaboration(1909-1912). The two men researched and influenced each other mutually. Braquestarted studying still-life, which, from then onwards became an importantelement in his works. It was an era of Analytical Cubism, a period when Braquestarted to use figures. For the fist time the artist introduced letters andnumbers, painted with stencils into his works. He incorporated natural elements(sand, sawdust, iron filings) and produced his first collages. Cubism enteredinto its synthetic period.

Braque is called up to fight in the First World War. He was badly wounded andunderwent a trepanation He recovered slowly and took up his painting again in1917. He was disconcerted by the development of his friend Picasso’s work andtheir collaboration came to an end.

George Braque advanced towards a less aggressive Cubism, more colourfulmoving more towards the respect of the object it represented. He produced inseries: Canephors, chimneys (1922-1927), swimmers, beaches, cliffs (1930), healso illustrated books commissioned by Vollard. Illustrating became an importantaspect of the artist’s work, throughout his life he illustrated texts fromApollinaire, Artaud, Eluard, Hésiode, Illiazd, Jouhandeau, Paulhan, Ponge,Reverdy, Saint-John Perse (“L’ordre des Oiseaux”), Au Vent dArles, 1962 (readthe extract of the editor’s interview) and many other writers, intellectuals orpoets.

The years that followed were particularly prolific and Braque’s evolution wasmarked out by a succession of decorative still-lives. At the end of the SecondWorld War a serious illness forced him to stop working for a while. In 1949Braque completed the first paintings in the “serie de Ateliers” and worked ontheatre scenery. 1n 1948 he and other artists (Léger, Lipchitz, Chagall,Rishier, Rouault, Bazaine, Matisse, Bonnard etc.) sculpted the door of thetabernacle of the Church of Assay (Haute-Savoie), which represented theEucharistic symbol, the fish, and produced small sketches for the fourtapestries to be the subject of the pedestal table .

In 1952 he was commissioned to paint the ceiling of the Henry II gallery atthe Louvre (black birds, outlined in white on a blue background). In 1956 hecreated the stain-glass windows for a chapel at Varengeville/Mer (Normandy)where he owned a house. In 1958 he finished the “Serie des Ateliers” begun inthe post war period.

Georges Braque died in Paris in 1963. He is buried in the marine cemetery atVarengeville/Mer, a small village hidden in a copse.