Georges Valmier & The Bulletin de l'Effort Moderne
The Cubist artist illustrated the covers of Léonce Rosenberg's Bulletin de l'Effort Moderne.
Bulletin de l'Effort Moderne, from 1924 [left] and 1926 [right]
In 1918, the art dealer Léonce Rosenberg opened his Galerie de l'Effort Moderne at 19 Rue de la Baume in Paris and quickly became one of the early twentieth century's most adamant champions of Cubism. There he exhibited many of the great Cubists of the time, including Juan Gris, Auguste Herbin, Fernand Léger, Jean Metzinger, Pablo Picasso, and Gino Severini, and also organized monthly readings and concerts.
Invitation designed by Valmier for a solo exhibition of his work at l'Effort Moderne
In 1920, Léonce Rosenberg officially began to represent the painter Georges Valmier, and the next year he held Valmier's first solo show at the Galerie de l'Effort Moderne. A few years later in 1924, Léonce Rosenberg launched the gallery's sister publication, the Bulletin de l'Effort Moderne, an art journal featuring articles written by Rosenberg and other contemporary critics and artists. Georges Valmier frequently wrote opinion pieces for the journal, and also designed its two covers. The first was used from 1924 to 1926, and the second was used from 1926 onwards. Both were Art Deco-inspired, characterized by bright colors and strong geometric patterns.
The Bulletin de l'Effort Moderne's last issue was published in 1927, but Georges Valmier continued to exhibit at the Galerie de l'Effort Moderne until the end of his short life (he died in 1937 just shy of his fifty-second birthday). In 1931, Valmier became a founding member of the Abstraction-Création Movement, along with Jean Arp, Auguste Herbin, Jean Hélion, and Frantisek Kupka. An evolution of Cubism, the group championed the use of geometric abstraction to achieve purity in their art. Today Valmier's art can be found in important public collections worldwide, including: The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris; Musée National d'Art Moderne (Pompidou), Paris; the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam; and the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven.
Several copies of the Bulletin de l'Effort Moderne along with Georges Valmier's 'Personnage debout' are included in the exhibition 'Cubist Perspectives' now on view at Rosenberg & Co., New York, until December 21, 2016.
