Germaine Richier

Exhibition at the Centre Pompidou, Paris, 1 March - 12 June 2023 ;
Musée Fabre, Montpellier, 12 July - 5 November 2023

Germaine Richier (1902-1959) was the first sculptor to be exhibited at the Musée National d'Art Moderne in 1956. She occupies a central position in the history of modern sculpture, like a link between Rodin and the first César. Trained in the tradition of Auguste Rodin and Antoine Bourdelle, Germaine Richier asserted herself as profoundly original and radical in little more than 25 years, from the 1930s until her early death.

This catalogue of the retrospective devoted to the artist brings together nearly 200 works - sculptures, prints and drawings. Drawing on previously unpublished research, the book chronologically retraces her artistic career, illuminating the major themes that nourished her sculptural practice (the human, the animal, myths, etc.), and reveals how Germaine Richier revitalized the figure, forging new images of men and women after the war.