Françoise Gilot facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Françoise Gilot
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Gilot in 2013
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Françoise Gaime Gilot
26 November 1921 Neuilly-sur-Seine, France
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| Died | 6 June 2023 (aged 101) New York City, US
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| Known for | Painting |
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| Partner(s) | Pablo Picasso (1943–1953) |
| Awards | Legion of Honour |
Françoise Gaime Gilot (born November 26, 1921 – died June 6, 2023) was a talented French painter. She was known for her beautiful watercolors and ceramic art. Françoise Gilot became famous not only for her art but also because of her relationship with the famous artist Pablo Picasso. After they separated, Picasso tried to stop galleries from showing her work and even tried to prevent her book, Life with Picasso, from being published.
Contents
Early Life and Art Training
Françoise Gilot was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. Her father was a businessman, and her mother was a watercolor artist. Her mother started teaching her art when Françoise was six years old. She learned to paint with watercolors and India ink. Françoise decided at age five that she wanted to be a painter.
Her father wanted her to be very educated, like him. He made sure she studied many subjects at home. By age six, she knew a lot about Greek mythology. When she was fourteen, she read books by famous writers like Edgar Allan Poe.
Even though her father wanted her to be a scientist or a lawyer, Françoise loved art. She often visited museums in Europe to learn from famous artists. She studied English literature at University of Cambridge and the British Institute in Paris. She also got a degree in philosophy from the Sorbonne in 1938.
In 1939, her father wanted her to study international law. Françoise went to law school in Rennes, France. But at 19, she decided to focus only on art. She took private art lessons and went to the Académie Julian. Françoise Gilot had her first art show in Paris in 1943.
Françoise Gilot and Pablo Picasso
When Françoise Gilot was 21, she met Pablo Picasso, who was 61. They met in a restaurant in Paris in 1943, during World War II. Françoise moved in with Picasso in 1946. They lived together for almost 10 years, and art was a big part of their lives. Picasso painted a famous picture of her called La femme-fleur (The Woman-Flower). Another artist, Henri Matisse, also liked Gilot and wanted to paint her.
Some art experts believe that Gilot's relationship with Picasso made it harder for her own art career to grow. When she left Picasso, he told art dealers not to buy her paintings. Gilot herself said that being known only as "Picasso's partner" was unfair to her as an artist.
Picasso and Gilot never married, but they had two children. Their son, Claude, was born in 1947. Their daughter, Paloma, was born in 1949.
In 1964, 11 years after they separated, Gilot wrote a book called Life with Picasso. She wrote it with art critic Carlton Lake. The book sold over a million copies in many languages. Picasso tried to stop the book from being published, but he failed. After the book came out, Picasso refused to see Claude or Paloma again. The money from the book helped Claude and Paloma become Picasso's legal heirs.
Gilot's Artworks
Françoise Gilot learned about art from a young age. Her mother taught her to use watercolors and India ink. Her mother believed artists should not rely on erasers. So, if Françoise made a mistake, she had to make it part of her artwork on purpose.
At 14, she started learning about ceramics. A year later, she studied with the Post-Impressionist painter Jacques Beurdeley. Even though Picasso influenced her, Gilot developed her own unique style. She did not use the sharp, angular shapes that Picasso sometimes used. Instead, she painted more natural, flowing shapes.
During World War 2, many of Gilot's early drawings and watercolors were lost when a truck carrying them was bombed.
Over the years, Françoise Gilot became more recognized as an important artist. The value of her work also grew. In 2021, her painting Paloma à la Guitare, a portrait of her daughter from 1965, sold for $1.3 million. Her art has been shown in famous museums around the world, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art.
Personal Life
After her relationship with Picasso, Françoise Gilot married artist Luc Simon in 1955. They had a daughter named Aurélia. They divorced in 1962.
In 1969, Gilot met Jonas Salk, who created the Salk vaccine for polio. They both loved architecture. They married in Paris in 1970. They lived apart for half of every year because Gilot continued to paint in New York City, La Jolla, and Paris. Their marriage lasted until Salk's death in 1995.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Gilot designed costumes, stage sets, and masks for shows at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City.
She was also the art director for a scholarly journal called Virginia Woolf Quarterly in 1973. From 1976 to 1983, she taught art courses at the University of Southern California.
Françoise Gilot spent her time between New York and Paris. She also worked to support the Salk Institute. In 2018, she released three sketchbooks that showed her travels in Venice, India, and Senegal.
Françoise Gilot passed away in a New York City hospital on June 6, 2023. She was 101 years old.
Awards
Françoise Gilot received high honors from the French government. In 1990, she was made a Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur. In 2010, she was named an Officer of the Légion d'honneur. These are among France's highest awards for achievements in the arts.
Books by Françoise Gilot
- Françoise Gilot and Carlton Lake, Life with Picasso, McGraw-Hill, 1964; Anchor Books/Doubleday, 1989, ISBN: 978-0-385-26186-9
- Françoise Gilot, Le regard et son Masque, Paris: Calmann-Lévy, 1975, ISBN: 978-2-7021-0092-9 – This book is about how she grew as an artist.
- Françoise Gilot, Interface: The Painter and the Mask, Press at California State University, Fresno, 1983, ISBN: 978-0-9122-0103-0
- Françoise Gilot, Matisse and Picasso: A Friendship in Art, Doubleday, 1990, ISBN: 978-0-385-26044-2; New York: Anchor Books, 1992, ISBN: 978-0-385-42241-3
See also
In Spanish: Françoise Gilot para niños
