Boats In A Bay - Maurice Menardeau - Oil On Canvas Signed Lower Left

 Maurice Menardeau Oil On Canvas Signed Lower Left, Maurice Ménardeau, French artist, lived a life marked by travel, military service in the Navy and an unwavering passion for painting. His biography is divided into several highlights: Born in Limoges on February 6, 1897, Ménardeau began his artistic journey by taking drawing and painting lessons in Paris in 1906. However, his ambitions to enter the Beaux-Arts were interrupted by the outbreak of the First World War. He then joined the Navy as a radiotelegraph operator, but his destiny changed in 1917 when a freighter on which he served, the Kuang-Si, was torpedoed by the Germans near Cape Lizard. Miraculously, none of the crew were injured. The forced stopover in Great Britain was a decisive moment for Ménardeau, because it was there that he discovered artistic treasures at the Cardiff Museum, thus triggering his passion for painting. After his military service, in 1921, he devoted himself fully to painting. He studied under the tutelage of Charles Fouqueray, a painter affiliated with the Ministry of the Navy and Air. Concarneau became his home base in 1924. Ménardeau exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français between 1925 and 1931, becoming a member along the way. In 1936, he was honored with the title of Painter of the Navy. Throughout his career, he explored the world, making trips to the Indian Ocean, Reunion Island, Indochina, South Africa, Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina and Chile. The Navy also tasked him with missions in these regions. After retiring from sailing in 1963, Ménardeau spent more time in Concarneau, traveling around France. In 1977, aware of his declining health, he decided to go to Curepipe, where he finally breathed his last. Ménardeau was a member of the group of Concarneau painters, a thriving artistic movement in Brittany, France. His artistic legacy, particularly as a Navy painter, continues to be celebrated by art lovers around the world.