Wilhelm Gimmi – The Drinker
“Le Buveur”/”The Drinker”
Man seated at a round cafe table with a bottle and glass in front of him.
Limited edition lithograph. Signed by the artist in pencil, and annotated “Epr. Artist – VI/X” (Artist’s Proof, 6 of 10)
Dimensions: 35cm x 44cm (full sheet) – 13cm x 19cm (image size)
(1886-Zurich – 1965 Chexbres)
Well-known Swiss 20th Century artist whose works are increasingly sought-after.
Wilhelm Gimmi began his artistic career in Paris, where he spent the first thirty-two years of his life as an artist, becoming known as a painter of classical nudes. He attended the Académie Julian, and in 1919 he exhibited in the Salon d’Automne with artists like Bonnard, Matisse and Marquet. In 1940 he moved back to Switzerland, to the town of Chexbres with its spectacular views over Lake Geneva (Lac Leman). He was a Co-founder of the Moderne Bund in 1911 with Klee, Arp, Helbig, Lüthy and Huber, one of the first associations of Swiss modern artists and contributed to the promotion of the avant-garde in Switzerland.
In Switzerland, Gimmi lightened his palette, and turned to painting landscapes and scenes of life in the neighboring vineyards of Lavaux.
Gimmi’s biography appears in the Benezit and the Grove Dictionary of Art. The Jenisch Museum in Vevey, Switzerland houses the Fondation Wilhelm Gimmi and an important collection of his work.
