Balclis, the oldest auction house in Barcelona, ??will award the he next Thursday, July 11 starting at 4:00 p.m. (local time) about 100 works of art from the studio of the French painter Marie-Antoinette Boullard-Devé, who resided in Vietnam in the decade from 1920.

Marie-Antoinette Boullard-Devé (Paris 1887 – Tangier 1970) was a notable artist whose work contributed to appreciation international of Vietnamese culture. Born in Paris, daughter of Louis Boullard and Marie Jeanne Tessier, was formed at the School of Fine Arts of Paris, finishing his studies in 1908. That same year, he married with the sculptor Pierre Fournier des Courats, whom he divorced in 1919. In 1920, she married the senior official of the French Government Maurice-Arsène Devé.

In 1922, he participated at the Exposition Coloniale in Marseille and in 1923, he carried out a monographic exhibition in the gallery La Licorne in Paris, where the French Government acquired his work "Le ballet des éventails". His participations in the Exposition internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels and la Exposition du Spiritisme of the I Congrès of the Fédération Spirite Internationale in 1925, they gave him additional recognition.

In 1926, he published the portfolio of lithographs "Vision de l’Indochine" with the Plon publishing house of Paris, accompanied of texts by Marc Chadourne. In 1928 and 1929, he carried out exhibitions individuals in Paris, Saigon and Hanoi, and her husband was appointed governor of Hue. In 1930, he exhibited in Bangkok while Maurice Devé premiered a musical composition in Saigon. Boullard-Devé He also had an outstanding participation in the Exposition Coloniale de Paris in 1931: the French State commissioned him the large frieze (150x390 cm) representing all types of Indochina and of French India, located on the central staircase of the replica of the Angkor Wat temple. In the Annam pavilion the portraits of the royal family and four ministers painted by Boullard for this occasion. Collaborate with the “Croisière expedition Jaune” organized by André Citroën.

In 1932, he participated at the I Salon des Artistes Musicalistes in the Galerie Druet in Paris, and in 1933, he began to collaborate with the charitable organization Ligue de la Bonté, of the which she became president in 1935. In the following decades, she continued exhibiting his work in Paris, San Francisco, Tangier and others cities. In 1946, he participated at the Salon d’Automne in Paris and made a solo exhibition in the gallery San Francisco Gumpel. In the 1950s, he carried out various exhibitions in Tangier and Paris. Boullard-Devé died in Tangier in 1970, leaving a significant mark on the art of his time, particularly in relation to Vietnamese culture.

Marie-Antoinette Boullard-Devé
Vietnamese boy
Oil on canvas
Made around 1926

It will be auctioned in Balclis next July 11, 2024

Marie-Antoinette Boullard-Devé
Vietnamese children
Gouache, charcoal and gold background on paper glued to board
Made around 1926

It will be auctioned in Balclis next July 11, 2024

Photograph of the author in front of one of her works
Source of the image

Precedent Nguyen hat from the Boullard-Devé collection, auctioned by Balclis in October 2021
Image source: auctionet