Art Basel

For our 47th consecutive year participating in Art Basel, we will be highlighting the work of Aurélie Nemours (1910-2005), whose work we exhibited at the end of 2015. Aurélie Nemours, a leading figure in French abstract art, passed away in 2005. Painting was always a necessity in her life; she painted from a very young age, initially for herself. The public encountered her work when she was 43; this was a deliberate choice, and the body of work she left behind testifies to a remarkable maturity. The support she received came primarily from artists such as Auguste Herbin (1882-1960), Marcelle Cahn (1895-1981), Jean Gorin (1899-1981), and Gottfried Honegger (1917-2016). Aurélie Nemours embodied humility while also demonstrating a strong commitment to geometry. Discreet yet ever-present, she was curious about others, especially the younger generation of artists such as Dubreuil and Popet, whom she advised and supported. She joined the Mesure group in 1961 and exhibited with them at the Rennes School of Fine Arts and in Germany.

One cannot discuss Groupe Mesure (1960-1966) without mentioning Groupe Espace (1951-1957), founded in 1951 by Félix Del Marle and later by André Bloc. These post-war times, when everything needed rebuilding and humanity needed to rediscover the pleasure of living in peace, resonated with all these artists. Using art to create a more peaceful environment was one of the guiding principles of Groupe Espace, as well as Groupe Mesure. One might think that after the events in Europe in 2015, this kind of phenomenon could reappear.

The Mesure group, also known as the "Experimental Group for Plastic Research," was founded in 1960 by Georges Folmer (1895-1977), president, and Jean Gorin (1892-1982), vice-president. It primarily brought together the "geometric abstract" artists of the RN (Réunion des Nouveaux Artes), whose exhibition space had been largely diminished by the rise of the Tachistes and then the Informel artists. Mesure thus revived the idea of ​​a synthesis of the arts developed by the Espace group in 1951, but it sought to give greater prominence to the integration of Constructivist plastics into architecture. It refocused on organizing exhibitions and events in France and abroad showcasing non-figurative artworks in connection with architecture. In fact, there was only one exhibition in France, at the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Rennes, and eight in Germany. The Groupe Mesure, at its first exhibition in Rennes in 1961, and to mark a historical lineage of geometric abstraction, was accompanied by works of Frantisek Kupka and Auguste Herbin, the deceased masters.

Aurélie Nemours was a model of diligence and perseverance for an entire generation of artists. The stand will be structured around some key artists of the Mesure group: Georges Folmer, Jean Gorin, Luc Peire, and the artists who supported her: Auguste Herbin, Marcelle Cahn, Gottfried Honegger and those she encouraged: Jean-François Dubreuil, Yves Popet, Charles Bézie, Jean-Michel Gasquet, Ode Bertrand and Henri Prosi.