
Emilie Charmy (1878 – 1974)
Wife of the famous painter George Bouche, she began in Lyon, and, although settled in Saint-Cloud in the Parisian suburbs, she continued to exhibit there throughout her career. Her subjects are varied, she paints nudes, landscapes, seascapes, interiors and still lifes of flowers and fruits. In Paris, she exhibited at the Salon des Indépendants from 1904. She took part in the Salon d’Automne in 1905 and became a member in 1910. The artist is appreciated and rewarded; the state made her a knight and then an officer of the Legion of Honor. She was exhibited at the Barbazanges gallery and at the Styles gallery during her lifetime.
In 1920, it was revealed by the scholars of his time. Colette devotes a few pages to it. She expresses herself on the subject of voluptuousness “Charmy […] masterful servant of feminine flesh […] the brush, subtle, without artifice, is guided by a lucid passion. “.
Its life is long, it produces a lot. Émilie Charmy is a painter of all trades and a painter of trades. It has several themes, one is centered around the woman, naked or clothed. She paints with matter, handles pigments and creates density and rhythm, echoing the painter of the Lyon school (Ravier, Carrand, Bouche and Cottavoz).
MUSEUMS
• In Paris: City of Paris Museum of Modern Art.
• In France: Grenoble Fine Arts Museum; Strasbourg Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art; Paul Dini museum in Villefranche-sur-Saône.
BIBILIOGRAPHY
• Emmanuel Bénézit, “Dictionary of painters, sculptors, designers and engravers”, t.3, Gründ Bookstore, reed. 1976, p. 504.
• Madeleine Bunoust, “ Some women painters” , Paris, Librairie Stock, 1936.
• Exhibition catalogue, “A few paintings by Charmy, a few pages by Colette”, Paris, Galerie d’Art Ancien et Moderne, Paris, 1924, 8 pages.
Photo credits:
Émilie Charmy in her studio on rue de Bourgogne, around 1950, Paris © www.emiliecharmy.org