Arman (Armand Fernandez)

1928 - 2005

Biography

An American sculptor of French birth, he lived in Nice and studied at Ecole des Arts Décoratifs where he was a friend of Yves Klein. Both artists were later closely associated in the Nouveau Réalisme movement.

He moved to Paris in 1949 to study at Ecole du Louvre. In 1954 he discovered the work of Kurt Schwitters, which had a profound impact on his direction, leading him to reject the lyrical obstruction dominant during the period.

Arman's free spirit and willingness to take chances typified his career, such as when he decided to change his name to simply 'Arman' on a whim after a printing error, although he had already stopped using his surname in 1947. By the late 1950s he had virtually abandoned traditional sculpture and painting altogether in favour of ready-made objects. The latter took the form of a type of performance art in his later years, when he would destroy them in a rage during public exhibitions, in an effort to discover no aesthetic effects. His choice of objects always symbolized the excesses of the consumer society.

After a series of visits to New York beginning in the mid 1960s, Arman became an American citizen in 1972.

Images

Monochrome nº 5008 1988 Pressed acrylic paint tubes on canvas 116.6 x 88.9 cm © ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2010