Maillol, Aristide

Maillol, Aristide

(ärēstēd` mäyôl`), 1861–1944, French sculptor, woodcut artist, and painter. At first a painter, Maillol studied at the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris, and then allied himself with the NabisNabis
[Heb.,=prophets], a group of artists in France active during the 1890s. Paul Sérusier and Maurice Denis were the principal theorists of the group. Outstanding members were Édouard Vuillard, Pierre Bonnard, Aristide Maillol, Félix Vallotton, and the
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. In his forties he turned to sculpture and quickly developed his characteristic style, creating strong, energetic nude figures of women. His affinity to classical sculpture was strengthened by a trip to Greece in 1908. Maillol's massive nudes were idealized, yet endowed with robustness and an impressive controlled tension. The River and several other works are in the Museum of Modern Art, New York City. Maillol also made woodcuts illustrating Daphnis and Chloë and the works of Ovid and Vergil. A museum devoted mainly to his works opened in Paris in 1995.

Bibliography

See his catalogue raisonné (in French) by M. Guérin (2 vol., 1965–67); his woodcuts, ed. by J. Rewald (1943); biography by J. Rewald (1975).