If you are a fan of jazz than you will most definitely dig (sorry I couldn't help it) the works of Sacha Chimkevitch (1920-2006). He successfully captured the mood of "blue notes" through the use of various color washes, which virtually enveloped the "room" and the musicians. Time to dust off those records!
Quartet
Jazz Session 2
Le Jazz Band. Galerie Pierre-François Garcier
Duo sur la musique (Duet)
Jazzband Polychrome
Jazz Session
Jazzman
Contre Jour
La Musique Mène Les Femmes
Le Jazz
General Information:
Artist: Sacha Chimkevitch
Nationality: French - Polish (Armenian mother and Persian Polish father)
Birth: August 17, 1920 in Paris, France
Death: April 2006
Education: School of Fine Arts, Paris; Académie de la Grand Chaumière, Paris.
Subject Matter: Though he is known best for his jazz images he also created landscapes, abstracts, scenics.
Points of Interest:
• He discovered jazz in 1937 and would attend the swing clubs in Paris where he met many rising jazz stars, including Alix Combelle, Danny Polo and Stéphane Grappelli
• While a prisoner of war during WWII, he would often sneak past the guards and head to the Cafés to listen to Dutch jazz musicians perform; whom were also brave for playing jazz under the Germans' noses!
• After selling a few of his pieces in a record store in 1948, he knew he could make a living from his art.
• He created most of his work from his imagination; rarely working from photos or real life.
Related Links:
Go to- Photo gallery/blog dedicated to Sacha Chimkevitch's work; note it is in French.
Go to- Sacha's Wikipedia page- translated into English.
If you are looking for one of his prints try eBay; there were few available at the time of this post.
3 comments:
Firstly, you're doing an excellent job with this site. I discovered it a few weeks ago and have been revisiting ever since.
The Chimkevitch prints are great. I love the mix of figures and abstract palette. Time to spin some Coltrane!
Thanks for the kind words. Glad you like the post!
I had a dream about Sacha last night and decided to google his name to find out what happened to him. I knew him personally and own 5 of his pieces, including one dedicated to me. Since I moved to the States 23 years ago, I lost touch with him and am saddened we lost such a great man and artist. I pass his prints every day in my house where they hold a place of honor.
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