Jean Osouf (1898-1996) - Lot 219

Jean Osouf (1898-1996) Presumed portrait of Nicole Circa 1940 Bronze with shaded brown patina Signed "J Osouf" and numbered "1/6 27.3 x 20 x 21.5 cm, on a wooden base H. 5.5 cm A member of the Groupe des Neuf, along with Paul Cornet, Raymond Corbin and Marcel Damboise, among others, Jean Osouf was a self-taught artist. A bookseller and First World War hero, it was Aristide Maillol who convinced him of his talent for sculpture. Osouf attended the Scandinavian Academy, where he studied under Charles Despiau. After the Exposition Universelle of 1937, where his statue L'Éveil (The Awakening) was well received by the critics, he embarked on a career as a sculptor influenced by medieval art.