Tapestry after a cartoon of Marc Saint Saëns (1903-1979)
France, Aubusson, Tabard Workshop
Woven in wool and cotton (warp in cotton and weft in wool)
20th century
Woven signature of the artist on the bottom left
Label signed by the artist was lost by the previous owner, a photo remains.
His abundant production is marked by a very recognisable, elegant and colourful style. The themes are inspired by nature (Seasons Suite, Elements Suite), mythology and theatre (Commedia dell'arte). One of his best known plays, Theseus and the Minotaur (1943), is in the collections of the MNAM - Centre Pompidou.
The city of Toulouse, where Saint-Saëns was born, keeps several of his works, both in private collections and in public buildings (a series of four large tapestries was commissioned by the municipality in 1950 to decorate the Théâtre du Capitole). Very involved in the creation of tapestry models, he founded, with Jean Picart Le Doux and Jean Lurçat, the Association of Cardboard Painters in 1947.