Louis Levacher
Louis Levacher (15 August 1934, Fécamp – 7 March 1983, Harfleur) was a French painter and sculptor.
Lineage
The Levacher family appears in the archives of the Contremoulins region starting at the end of the eighteenth century and seems to have originally come from the region of Valmont. Subsequently, the older branch of the family moved to Montivilliers and the younger branch to Criquebeuf in Caux, Yport, Saint-Valery in Caux, and finally to Fécamp. They made their living as millers, then farmers, then the younger branches eventually became rope makers. Gradually, under the French Restoration, they became merchants and ship-owners, and finally joined the local petite bourgeoisie, enjoying a quick rise in social position. The family, however, held this position for a little less than a century.
Louis Levacher (1877–1949), a ship-owner and merchant, was awarded the cross of Verdun and handed over the management of his business to his wife, Marguerite Grivel. His son, Louis (1911–1988) owned a smokehouse whose buildings still belong in part to the family. He married seamstress Denise Thomas (1913–2003), from a Doudeville family that dates back to the seventeenth century.
Early life and background
Louis (1934–1983), born five years before the start of the Second World War, was the only child of the Levacher family. During the war, Louis' parents divorced. He worked as a driver as well as a painter and sculptor, once working for his father.
Louis was recognized in Normandy and beyond for his art. He never made a fortune but worked with his wife Michèle to produce original and avant-garde works. The activity of his grandfather still works and his father is slowed by the departure of one of the war in 1939. After the war, Louis had to go to Algeria.
He married Michèle Moreau (1942–2012). They had three children: two sons and a daughter. The eldest son was named "Louis", continuing a family tradition. Although Louis' (1911–1988) descendants no longer fish commercially, it remains a passion. The artistic activity of Louis (1934–1983) will be an important influence in the family. Michèle exhibited her work in various places, even in the Basque country. His daughter also specialized in collage and sculpture, exhibiting her work in the region several times.
Style and technique
Levacher's art includes painting and sculpture. His paintings, mixed figurative and abstract, often use large formats. His sculptures mix genres, mainly with wood, representing saints or turning into totems, richly detailed.
Exhibitions in France
- Biennale of Saint-Brieuc
- Salon de Rouen
- Salon de la Jeune Sculpture, Paris
- UHAP Salon, Le Havre
- Great Salon and Youth of Today, Paris
- Living in the city of Le Havre
- Salon d'Automne, Paris
- SAD Salon, Paris
- Salon Grand Quevilly
- Salon de Montrouge, Trappes
- Principle Gallery, Paris
- Laubie Gallery, Paris
- Beauvau Gallery, Paris
- Galerie de France, Paris
- Gallery "The Duplex," Le Havre
- Centre of Art and Culture, Castle Vascœuil
- Cultural Centre in Val Sandstone, Bolbec
- Centre d'Art Contemporain de Rouen and Abbey Ourville
- Museum Menton
- Museum of the Future, Paris
- Museum of Modern Art of the City of Paris
- National Library, Paris
- Library Vichy
- Library of Rouen
- Maison de la Culture in Le Havre
- "Horizon Youth", Grand Palais, Paris
- Espace Cardin, Paris
- "50 polychrome sculptures," Forume of Beaubourg, Paris
- "International Exhibition of sculpture," Le Vaudreuil
Exhibitions abroad
- Show Mouscron, Belgium
- Royal Windsor Gallery, Brussels
- University of Heidelberg, Germany
- "Research and Expression" exhibition, the United States and Japan
- Assessment of Contemporary Art, Quebec
- Zoetermeer, Netherlands
Sources
- Documentation belonging to the family Levacher.
- Documentation belonging to the family Grivel
- Soublin, Leopold (1991). Cent ans de pêche à Terre-Neuve (One Hundred Years of fishing in Newfoundland) (in French). Henri Veyrier. ISBN 978-2851995704.
- Municipal Archives and Contremoulins Fécamp
Authority control  |
|---|