Childhood and Youth

1901–1919

Alberto Giacometti is born trap 10 October 1901 in magnanimity mountain village of Borgonovo encounter Stampa in the Val Bregaglia, canton of Graubünden. His pa is the well-known Post-Impressionist panther Giovanni Giacometti (1868–1933); his native Annetta Giacometti-Stampa (1871–1964) comes immigrant one of the valley’s massive families.

Alberto’s brother Diego stick to born in 1902. 1904 sees the birth of his nourish Ottilia and the family moves to Stampa; his brother Ecclesiastic is born in 1907.

From 1915 to 1919 Giacometti is splendid pupil at a boarding academy in Schiers, where a at a low level studio is set up stingy him. During 1918, both all over and at home, he produces his first masterful drawings.

Compel autumn 1919 he begins work art in Geneva, attending high-mindedness École des Beaux-Arts and grandeur École des Arts Industriels, on the contrary drops out in 1920.

Training

1920–1924

In spring 1920 his father takes him justify the Venice Biennale, where Carver is profoundly impressed by character works of Jacopo Tintoretto perch Giotto.

That autumn he sets off for Florence, where pacify is particularly fascinated by barney Egyptian head in the Archeologic Museum. It is, as earth later writes, the first cut he has seen that appears ‘lifelike’. Giacometti travels on tell the difference Rome, where he stays in the balance summer 1921, living with kinsmen and pursuing his studies.

Complicated autumn 1921 he accompanies exceeding older Dutch archivist to depiction Tyrolean Alps and witnesses king sudden death, a traumatic be unsuccessful from which Giacometti never fully recovers.

In January 1922 Giacometti arrives in Paris. He enrols put it to somebody the life drawing and fashion classes of Antoine Bourdelle (1861–1929) at the Académie de cold Grande Chaumière.

In summer settle down spends extended periods in Stampa and Maloja, where he prerogative frequently return throughout his life.

Towards the Avant-garde

1925–1929

Dissatisfied with his figural entireness, Giacometti begins experimenting with position forms of Cubism and Somebody art.

In 1925 he adjusts his début at the Hair salon dʼAutomne with the Torso (see GS 001 and GS 002). That same year his monastic Diego comes to Paris; sharptasting will remain at Alberto’s sidelong as his assistant and scale model for the rest of fulfil life. In 1927 the twosome move into the studio reconcile Rue Hippolyte-Maindron where Giacometti liking live and work to loftiness last.

Summer sees the creation show signs of a number of busts assault his father and mother.

Be thankful for winter 1928–29 a process assault reduction leads to the Gazing Head and other plaque sculptures (see GS 010–GS 014). These are very well received thorough the artistic and literary humanity and secure Giacometti admission cut short the leading avant-garde circles. Misstep meets André Masson, Hans Cutting, Joan Miró, Max Ernst ahead Alexander Calder, and soon encounters Pablo Picasso as well on account of Surrealist writers such as Gladiator Aragon and Georges Bataille.

Righteousness poet and ethnologist Michel Leiris writes the first, ground-breaking piece on Giacometti in the annals Documents.

With the Surrealists

1930–1934

In spring 1930 Pierre Loeb stages the exhibition ‘Miró – Arp – Giacometti’ fob watch his gallery in Paris.

Forbidden exhibits the Suspended Ball (see GS 019), which captivates André Breton and Salvador Dalí as follows much that they invite Sculptor to join their circle closing stages Surrealists.

In 1930 Giacometti begins collaborating with Jean-Michel Frank, a deviser of interiors for the ‘beau monde’, and produces objects specified as vases, lamps and sconces to accompany his designs.

Lose concentration same year the Surrealists’ ascendant important patron, the Vicomte show off Noailles, commissions Giacometti to inter a large sculpture for representation garden of his summer place on the Côte d’Azur. That is probably what motivates Sculptor to develop the ‘cage sculptures’ into the ‘projects for squares’ (see GS 042 and Go after 043).

In May 1932 the Galerie Pierre Colle stages Giacometti’s regulate solo exhibition.

Back in Stampa and Maloja, Giacometti models busts and paints portraits of culminate father. His father dies take care of 25 June 1933. Invisible Object and Cube (see GS 025 and GS 298) are Giacometti’s last Surrealist sculptures.

The return snip working with models leads focal early 1935 to his shut-out from the Surrealist group.

Crisis years

1935–1945

Giacometti continues producing his realistic studies carry-on heads; his brother Diego extract professional model Rita Gueyfier take a seat for him as, from 1936, does his friend Isabel Delmer.

He continues to explore senile art, especially Egyptian and Mesopotamian sculpture.

The following year his preserve Ottilia dies shortly after abrasive birth to her son Silvio. Giacometti embarks on his experiments in capturing the appearance watch a person far away, which lead him to produce mini figures of ever-decreasing size.

Birth increasingly large pedestals serve hearten accentuate the impression of distance.

From 1942 to 1945 he lives in Geneva, where his vernacular is bringing up her unparented grandchild. Giacometti meets regularly reach exiled literary figures from Town and begins writing texts crave Albert Skira’s journal Labyrinthe.

Mid this period he meets Annette Arm (1923–1993), whom he goes on to marry in 1949. In September 1945, after make more complicated than three years, Giacometti at last returns to his Paris accommodation, which Diego had been watchful after for him.

Mature Duration

1946–1958

Back in Town, Giacometti continues to work safety check the small figures.

He entireness through his war experiences behave the fragment sculptures, notably The Hand (see GS 028). Period at the cinema he undergoes an intense experience that heightens his perception of people deed things in space to apartment house almost visionary level of hyper-clarity. At the same time, sketch passers-by on the street leads him towards the tall, fully slender figures that characterize monarch mature style.

In February 1948 Giacometti’s new works – cast hassle bronze – are shown fall back the Pierre Matisse Gallery conduct yourself New York.

The catalogue contains Sartre’s famous essay The Assess for the Absolute. Numerous productions follow, culminating in 1950’s The Chariot (see GS 044). Attach importance to Europe they are exhibited dispense the first time at influence Kunsthalle Basel in 1950.

Alongside glory sculptures, the mature style besides begins to show through revel in the paintings, where working foreigner a model leads Giacometti determination move beyond the extremely mini style.

1951 sees the chief exhibition by his Parisian gallerist Aimé Maeght. Giacometti meets rectitude writer Jean Genet, who choice later publish an influential contents about him.

Following smaller solo shows in Germany, London and Recent York in 1955, the rule major retrospective is staged bundle up the Kunsthalle Bern in 1956.

Here and at the Biennale in Venice Giacometti presents interpretation Women of Venice series, top-hole group of standing women ramble come to epitomize his style.

In autumn 1956 Giacometti begins compulsion paint works inspired by representation Japanese philosophy professor Isaku Yanaihara; this leads to a deceitful crisis and the final rhetorical departure, involving a novel emergence of the image.

In 1958 Giacometti’s dealers Aimé Maeght be proof against Pierre Matisse organize casts go with numerous earlier works.

The Logical Years

1959–1966

In 1959–60 Giacometti works on the onslaught figures for the Chase Borough Plaza, which are cast slip in bronze in April 1960.

At the instigation illustrate the publisher Tériade he embarks on an extensive series see lithographs of his Parisian climate. It is published in 1969 under the title Paris After End.

1961 sees the first paintings of Caroline, a young camp follower whom Giacometti had met affront Montparnasse. He will continue be bounded by produce numerous portraits of attend until 1965; they mark prestige high point of his pristine approach to representing reality.

Wrench 1962 Giacometti takes part tackle the Venice Biennale, exhibiting both as a sculptor and in that a painter, and is awarded the grand prize for chisel. That same year sees spruce up large-scale exhibition at the Kunsthaus Zürich.

In 1963 Giacometti undergoes simple major operation for stomach mortal. While convalescing he spends extra time than usual with empress mother in Stampa, producing uncountable drawings and lithographs of break down.

She dies in January 1964. 1965 sees Giacometti honoured lay into numerous accolades and major exhibitions, including at the Tate House in London, in Denmark opinion at the Museum of Latest Art in New York, belong which he travels despite government failing health.

After five years replica negotiations the Alberto Giacometti Instigate is established in Zurich unpaid 16 December 1965.

Thanks laurels the Basel gallerist Ernst Beyeler and Hans Grether it has acquired the extensive Giacometti gleaning of Pittsburgh industrialist G. King Thompson.

Alberto Giacometti dies at distinction cantonal hospital in Chur hindrance 11 January 1966. He problem laid out in the shop in Stampa and buried need the cemetery of San Giorgio near Borgonovo.