Bernard Buffet

I stumbled upon the work of French painter Bernard Buffet fairly recently in the pages of Elle magazine. His painting of Paris jumped off from the wall of handbag designer Sulaika Zarrouk’s Manhattan apartment (above) and I simply had to learn more. It turns out the man was not only a talented painter, but also a lithographer, engraver, designer and occasional sculptor. The more work I saw of Bernard Buffet, the more I loved him! Buffet was born in Paris in 1928 and by age twenty had already gained considerable critical acclaim for his artwork (no suprise there). His work was known for its strikingly dark outlines and elongated, sharp forms. Sadly, I also learned that Buffet’s later years were consumed by his struggle with Parkinson’s disease and in 1999 the talented painter took his own life. Below are some photographs of Buffet, his wife Annabel and a friend of his you may recognize, a young Yves Saint Laurent. I’ve also included some pieces of the late painter I particularly enjoy…