André BARELIER (1934-2021) - Lot 123

André BARELIER (1934-2021) Telephone booth Bronze, brown patina, signed and numbered 1/8 H. 100 cm W. 71 cm D. 64 cm Born in Plan-de-Cuques, southern France, in 1934, sculptor and draughtsman André Barelier studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts de Marseille from 1948 to 1958, while working for a sculptor, and at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts de Paris from 1953 to 1961. In 1961, he was awarded the special prize in the monumental art competition, and went on to win the first Grand Prix de Rome. Between 1962 and 1965, André Barelier stayed at the Villa Medici, where his meeting with Balthus was to play a decisive role in the development of his drawings and sculptures. He also discovered Giacometti, who would influence him in his search for a link between the subject and the surrounding space. His first solo exhibition. was held in Paris in 1967 at the Galerie Visconti. In 1968, André Barelier was appointed professor at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Numerous exhibitions of his work were held in France and abroad. In 1981, a Balthus-Barelier-Rouan exhibition was held in Ratilly. André Barelier's work demonstrates classical craftsmanship and a mastery of materials, particularly in his bronze works, which alternate between worked and flat surfaces.