Philippe Noyer

(French, 1917 - 1985)

“My paintings are what they appear to be, nothing more, nothing less. Some are serious, some are not, but I have always painted what I have felt.”
— Philippe Noyer

Throughout his career, modern artist Philippe Noyer's work has always been unique. Noyer produced many portraits, for which he quickly gained an international reputation, but he also painted dream figures in rural or maritime settings, compositions that were surreal in concept. He is also well known for capturing the quirky grace of the Art Deco Era. His compositions are often intellectual or literary musings of his fantasy. He seems to have observed the many modern art approaches without being dominated by any of them. His rigorous technical approach is contrasted by freedom within his subjects. Although he uses traditional/ classical techniques, his style is unique and illustrative.

Philippe Noyer was born in Lyon, France in June of 1917, and grew up alongside the expansion of Surrealist art. He studied at the École des Roches, and afterwards the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Lyon. He then moved to Paris, where he studied at the Paul Colin School of Art. He married Nora Kern in 1939 and they would have four children: Denis Paul, Corinne, Laurence, and Ariel.

His painting career took off in 1943 when he met Paris art dealer Emmanuel David, who promoted the world-known School of Paris painters from 1943 – 1950, and who helped Noyer get a contract with the Drouant-David Gallery of Paris. Painting owls wrapped in leaves and round-faced urchins with their pet animals at the time, Philippe Noyer soon became one of the most sought after portraitist of Paris and London high society. The Gallery gave him his first one-man show in 1947, and he was immediately successful. In 1949, the gallery consigned twenty of Noyer’s paintings to an American art dealer who had agreed to organize an exhibition of them in the United States. However the American dealer got into a pickle with some gambling debts and unexpectedly sold them at cost to Robert Goldstein, the former President of the 20th Century Fox movie company. Goldstein was so pleased with his purchase, that he distributed the art to his friends, including Samuel Goldwyn, who, in turn, made Philippe Noyer’s name known on the West Coast. Noyer found himself in a difficult financial situation in 1960, and Goldstein jetted him from Paris to London, and organized an auction at which all of Noyer’s current paintings were sold to Goldstein’s friends. They would remain close friends until Goldstein passed away in 1974.

Noyer was famous for his unique style of portraiture and created portraits for celebrities and personalities such as Elizabeth Taylor, Jean Wallace, and Dinah Shore. His portraits often favor a light palette, however in some a black background highly contrasts the woman or subject. In the sixties, Noyer put aside commissioned portraiture and began painting the delicately stylized, sophisticated, slim, long-limbed ladies that became his favorite subject. Many of his elegant ladies are sitting in chairs, long legs crossed, and staring off. The colors and subjects of his compositions vary, but women accompanied by foliage are a common motif. Flowers and plants weave into the piece, and sometimes animals such as leopards or big cats.

″Though he never lived in California, my father considered himself to be an American painter,” Noyer’s son, Denis-Paul, has said, who is also an artist. Denis-Paul described how his father’s work was not appreciated by French art critics. ″My father went against all the taboos - he used anecdotes, poetry and feelings in his work, and critics found that irritating… They called him a dandy, but for him, life was a book of images.″

Noyer died in 1985 from the consequences of a surgery he’d had the previous year, and his daughter spread his ashes over his favorite place, the Mediterranean. Besides painting, he also wrote several volumes of poetry and owned a collection of Japanese bronzes and curiosity objects. Noyer showed his work in some of the world’s most prestigious galleries including Drouant-David in Paris, the Hammer Gallery in New York, Acosta in Los Angeles, Chicago’s Callard Gallery, and Gallerie 65 in Cannes. He produced over 2000 oil paintings and watercolors, which continue to be highly sought after and collectable, and which private collections, museums, and galleries worldwide display.

American Fine Art, Inc. is proud to feature the original works and limited editions of Philippe Noyer. Visit our 12,000 sq. ft. showroom in Scottsdale, Arizona or call today. Our website is offered only as a limited place to browse or refresh your memory and is not a reflection of our current inventory. If you need to learn more about collecting, pricing, value, or more information, your International Art Consultant will assist and provide the one on one attention you deserve. We hope you find our website helpful and look forward to seeing you in Scottsdale soon.