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THBRene Gruau (1909-2004) French/American, "The Surprise" Color Lithograph
About Seller
522 South Pineapple Avenue
Sarasota, FL 34236
United States
Sarasota Estate Auction specializes in a wide variety of furniture, antiques, fine art, lighting, sculptures, and collectibles. Andrew Ford, owner and operator of the company, has a passion for finding the best pieces of art and antiques and sharing those finds with the Gulf Coast of Florida.
Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Two ways to bid:
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About Auction
LiveMar 29, 2025
Over 800 lots will be offered in day 1 of our 2 day auction weekend! There are multiple lots of fine art from mixed medias and abstracts to landscapes and lithographs. We have a Bill Mack Swarovsky Crystal Sculpture, Movie Ephemera, Modern Furniture, Art Glass Sculptures, Park West Gallery Artworks, and more. Sarasota Estate Auction sarasotaestateauction@gmail.com
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- Lot Description
René Gruau (1909-2004) French/American, "The Surprise" Color Lithograph. Shows a tantalizing glimpse of a ankle and pointed foot slowly sticking through an open door. Signed in pencil bottom right. Numbered 177/300 in pencil bottom left. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity and appraisal from Park West Gallery.
Overall Size: 32 3/4 x 26 1/4 in.
Sight Size: 19 3/4 x 13 in.
Renato Zavagli Ricciardelli delle Caminate (professionally known as René Gruau) was born on February 4th, 1909 in Rimini, Italy. The son of an Italian count, he chose not to follow in his father’s footsteps and accept the job of royal military commander, focusing instead on an early passion he developed for the arts. When René’s mother, a French aristocrat, and his father separated when he was three, he moved to Paris with her. At fourteen Gruau took his mother’s maiden name, to further distance himself from any noble connection, and began to support his mother and himself by selling drawings to the Milanese fashion journal Lidel. He was inspired to pursue fashion illustration due to routinely sketching his mother in elegant outfits, and was soon working part-time for Femina, Marie Claire, and Vogue in Paris in his late teens and early twenties. During World War II Gruau found it difficult to find work, mainly contributing to Christian Dior before they became popular and established, and devoted much of his time and energy to assisting the Resistance with the concealment and movement of Jewish refugees. After the war his efforts were remembered and his style better appreciated, and when he moved to America in 1948 he quickly became synonymous with some of the biggest fashion magazines of the century, including Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, and Flair. Gruau was hired by major designers like Pierre Balmain, Balenciaga, Elizabeth Arden, and Hubert de Givenchy, illustrating their haute couture clothing in exciting and dynamic new ways. His early works echoed the sketches of Paris night life by Toulouse-Lautrec, with classical Japanese prints inspiring him from the 1950s onward. Many of his later works were for theatrical shows and cabarets, as well as film posters and modern takes on classic French poster designs. There were major retrospective exhibitions of Gruau’s work at the Paris Musée du Costume in 1989 and Musée de la Publicité in 1999, and a wing of the Rimini City Museum devoted to Gruau was built in 2001. Gruau died on March 31st, 2004 in Rome, Italy, and today many of his pieces are in permanent collections of art institutions around the world, including the Louvre in Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
#6034 .
- Shipping Info
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SHIPPING INFORMATION·
Sarasota Estate Auction IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR SHIPPING! BUYER MUST ARRANGE SHIPPING. All shipping will be handled by the winning bidder. Sarasota Estate Auction recommends obtaining shipping quotes before bidding on any items in our auctions. To obtain a quote, please email info@premiershipment.com. Be sure to include the lot you are interested in and address you would like the quote for. Refunds are not offered under any circumstances base on shipping issues, this is up to the buyer to arrange this beforehand.
BIDDER MUST ARRANGE THEIR OWN SHIPPING. Although SEA will NOT arrange shipping for you, we do recommend our preferred shipper Premier Shipping & Crating at info@premiershipment.com You MUST email them, please DO NOT CALLl. If you'd like to compare shipping quotes or need more options, feel free to contact any local Sarasota shippers. You can email any one of the shippers below as well. Be sure to include the lot(s) you won and address you would like it shipped to. Brennan with The UPS Store #0089 - 941-413-5998 - Store0089@theupsstore.com AK with The UPS Store #2689 - 941-954-4575 - Store2689@theupsstore.com Steve with The UPS Store #4074 - 941-358-7022 - Store4074@theupsstore.com Everett with PakMail - 941-751-2070 - paktara266@gmail.com
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- Size
32 3/4 x 26 1/4 in.
