Born Italy, 1909. 1924, in Paris, Gruau began his lifelong career as a fashion illustrator. Died Rome March 31,2004.With his stunning, passionate figures, his arresting use of color and dramatic, explosive economy of line, Gruau in the 40’s developed his distinctive “New Look” which greatly impacted haute couture, theatre, art and commercial design. With his trademark use of his powerful minimal line, Gruau’s style combined seductive sophistication with classic beauty, grace and sensual elegance. The quality of the visual appeal of his glamorous and radiant “beautiful people” is at once bold and languid, and internationally his art is ranked as exceptional and masterful, timeless and enduring. In the 1940‘s and 50‘s Gruau became a favorite of the haute couture world, working with Femina, Marie-Claire, L'Officiel, L'Album Du Figaro and other “high-style” magazines. Some of Gruau’s best work can be seen in the dramatic visual statements he rendered for Christian Dior, Balenciaga, Elsa Schiaparelli, and Hubert de Givenchy . In 1948 Rene Gruau left for the United States to work for Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, before becoming the exclusive artist for FLAIR. He also produced stunningly beautiful advertisements for the LIDO, MOULIN ROUGE and BEMBERG. Almost right up until his death at the age of 95 Gruau continued to work for the greatest names in Haute Couture: Balmain, Fath, Schiaparelli, Balenciaga, Givenchy, Rochas while also producing fashion drawings for ELLE, Vogue, France, Madame Figaro and L'Officiel de la Couture.. Today his works are collected and exhibited by the finest art institutions including the Louvre in Paris. Rene Gruau’s artistic passion, intensity and technical brilliance have left a high-water mark on art history.
(Text by Artophile)
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