François Bouché (1924-2005) Maison Close

Modernism, cold and sober colors for this oil on canvas whose perfectly mastered drawing of curves and shapes immediately reminds us that François Bouché is an outstanding and very talented sculptor and designer.
Titled on the back “Maison Close”, it represents three naked young women, in suspender belts, hiding one behind the other.
   Shy or tempting parade?
The work in good condition is presented in a modern black American crate type frame which measures 80.5 cm by 57.5 cm and 73 cm by 50 cm for the canvas alone.
It is signed lower left, titled, dated (19)88 and countersigned on the back.

Resistance fighter, member of the communist Vaillant-Couturier commando, he created one of his first works for the first memorial to the martyrs of the Resistance at Mont-Valérien in Suresnes (Hauts-de-Seine). François Bouché frequents many “masters”, the main ones being Marcel Gimond, Henri Laurens, Constantin Brancusi, Germaine Richier and Ossip Zadkine.
It was by discovering Christier's profession (ivory statuettes) during his eleven years working with a neighboring artisan, that François Bouché declared that he would be a sculptor. At the age of 14, François participated in the restoration of Reims Cathedral, damaged by the bombings of the First World War. It was then that the sculpture was truly revealed to him. In October 1940, François left his family for the School of Fine Arts in Paris, which he attended until 1946. He received his Major in 1942. Odd jobs made it difficult for him to survive until the end of his studies. without affecting his passion.
Professor of technical education in Paris from 1947 to 1951, then professor at the École supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Marseille. On this date he made a study trip to Morocco, and in 1953, he was responsible for a study in Greece on Cycladic Idols. Its evolution depends on the techniques used. In 1956, he began new research on metal as a means of expression, as evidenced by: The duel, Lucretia, The judgment of Solomon. He used silver and stainless steel for Christ in St Georges Church in Marseille in 1961. He returned to small bronzes and terracotta in 1963.
His work
For François Bouché, drawing has always been a privileged means of expression: no sculptures without preparatory drawings. From there, his exhibitions are sometimes solely devoted to drawing. We find his works, sculptures, drawings, but also paintings among numerous collectors, particularly in Italy, a country with which he maintained privileged relationships (many of his works in bronze will be cast at the founder Venturi in Bologna, where he regularly met his friend the sculptor Berrocal).
In his adopted city, Marseille and its surroundings, you can see some of François Bouché's works:

     the 2 sculptures by Michel de Nostradamus in Salon-de-Provence, monumental sculptures, the first made in 1963 in welded copper plates, (one ton, 4 meters high). After a traffic accident, it was restored by the city and erected on Place de l'Ancienne Halle in front of the Crau museum and near the home of Michel de Nostradamus. The second, made in 1973 and which replaced the damaged sculpture, is located on avenue Georges Guynemer (monumental cast aluminum sculpture 10 meters high).
     the Mediterranean (1977, 6 tonnes of sandstone fired in Uzès) for the autonomous port of Marseille, a monumental sculpture which welcomes travelers arriving from all Mediterranean ports.
     the Sound of the Sea, 1979, monumental sculpture for the city of Cassis as well as the war memorial in the public garden;
     the Grand Crucifix, a monumental sculpture in stainless steel and silver and the baptistery in the Saint-Georges church in Marseille;
     a monumental sculpture for the State in 1973, Homage to Leonardo da Vinci (polished steel) at the Collège des Remparts in Marseille.
     Messidora, monumental sculpture in white marble weighing 5 tonnes, carved in Carrara and installed in the Square des Frères Ambrogiani on the Allée Turcat Méry in Marseille.
     Omphalos, bronze sculpture, collection of the Galerie d'Art du Conseil Général museum in Aix-en-Provence.
     the bust of Antonin Artaud, bd du zoological garden, at the entrance to the garden of the Palais Longchamp, at the Cinq Avenues Longchamp metro station.
     Mother and child, bronze sculpture fountain at the Camargo Foundation in Cassis.
     Silence, the Gypsy of the Saintes, Messidora, Nude with raised arms, Help, five bronze sculptures from the collection of the Regards de Provence museum.
     His final work, the bust of the composer Henri Tomasi sculpted at the request of his family.
     The Tree of Love, bronze sculpture donated by the Bouché family to the town of Salon-de-Provence (exhibited at the Town Hall).
     François Bouché was cremated in Marseille on April 20, 2005.
     The Regards de Provence museum in Marseille pays tribute to him for the tenth anniversary of his death with an exhibition from September 2015 to March 2016: “François Bouché, Courbes et Espaces”.
     In July and August 2017, the city of Salon-de-Provence is exhibiting sculptures and drawings (“Itineraries of a Sculptor”) at the Espace Culture Robert de Lamanon. Visitors will rediscover François Bouché, the author of the two monumental sculptures of Nostradamus created for the city around fifty years ago.
     “The ideal order is the one you make for yourself. »
     — François Bouché

Honors
He is an outstanding laureate of the Institut de France, Grand Prix de L’Académie de Provence. He is a professor at the Beaux Arts in Luminy and a member of the Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters of Marseille. In 1983 he became a member of the Marseille Academy.