Jules Pascin French Painter
This French Expressionist Painted Prostitutes and Naked Women
Pascin was born Julius Mordecai Pincas (1885-1930) in Bulgaria, but lived his life in Paris, France. His original family name was Paskinian and he shortened his name to Jules Pascin.
Pascin is perhaps best known for his amazing and solid paintings of women in various states of undress, many of them prostitutes or artist’s models. Many of his paintings and drawings seem created from life, with sensitive and undulating lines that define these women. The feminine bodies of Pascin’s models are convincing in their curves and three-dimensionality.
When the French give their celebrities titles it is in direct reference to the quantity of their partying and the height of their popularity, and Pascin is no exception to this rule. Just as his contemporary Henri Toulouse-Lautrec was known as the Soul of Montmartre, Pascin was known as the Prince of Montparnasse.
Not only was Pascin reknown for his great paintings of women, he was also known for his generous parties, his entourage of merry-makers, and his consumption of alcohol. When invited to parties he would typically arrive carrying as many bottles of wine as he could. In this, as in his subject matter of prostitutes, Pascin is the artistic cousin of Toulouse-Lautrec and certainly title-worthy. He is most often referred to historically as a French Expressionist.
This oil painting of a Reclining Model from 1925 is typical of Pascin’s work. A well-drawn naked woman reclines on a bed on a sea of sheets and pillows. Her form is solidly rendered with lines that fluctuate and move, as gracefully as the lines of the model. His use of color is almost translucent, and relies on a subtle modeling of pastel colors to create believable form and weight. This is not necessarily a sexy painting, but it is sensitive and sensual representation of a nude model.
While Pascin enjoyed commercial success and was able to sell his drawings to galleries and magazines, he was plagued by poor financial management, self-doubt and depression. He committed suicide by slitting his wrists and hanging himself in his Montmartre studio on the eve of an important art opening.
As a testament to how well-beloved Pascin was in the community, on the day he was buried, all art galleries in Paris closed for the day. His funeral was attended by thousands and included many waiters and bartenders who walked behind his coffin on the three-mile walk to the Cemetiere de Saint-Ouen. No doubt Pascin was a good tipper as well as a good artist.
Source: Pascin
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