Figure in blue
Signed J Coignard. Mixed media on panel 32 x 24.5 cm.
Purchased in the 1970s at Galleri Östermalm in Stockholm, which was owned by Editions Sonet.
Thence by descent.
James Coignard was born in 1925 in Tours, France. After the family moved to Paris, his interest in art was awakened. Although he initially worked at the tax office, he began painting landscapes inspired by Cézanne, van Gogh, and Gauguin. In 1948, he decided to become an artist, studied in Nice, and had his first exhibition in 1949.
Encounters with, among others, Braque and Chagall influenced his artistic development, particularly his use of colour. Travels to Spain during the 1950s provided new impulses. From 1986 onwards, he primarily worked with carborundum etching and is regarded as a master of the technique.
His works are characterised by collage, layers upon layers, symbols and numbers, as well as a colour palette ranging from vibrant reds and blues to earth tones. Coignard passed away in 2008 in Mougins, France.