Yves Tanguy

by Michael P.


Yves Tanguy was a surrealist painter. He was born in Paris, France on January 5, 1900. He was the son of a retired navy captain. His parents were both of Breton origin. After his father's death in 1908, his mother moved back to her native Locronan, Finistère. He ended up spending much of his youth living with various relatives. In 1918, Yves Tanguy briefly joined the merchant navy before being drafted into the Army, where he met Jacques Prévert. At the end of his military service in 1922, he returned to Paris, where he worked many peculiar jobs. By chance, he stumbled upon a painting by Giorgio de Chirico. He was so deeply impressed he resolved to become a painter himself in spite of his complete lack of training. Tanguy had a habit of being completely absorbed by the current painting he was working on. This way of creating artwork might have came about due to his very small studio which could only comfortably have enough room for one wet piece. Through his friend Jacques Prévert, in around 1924 Tanguy was introduced into the circle of surrealist artists around André Breton. Tanguy quickly began to develop his own unique painting style, giving his first solo exhibition in Paris in 1927, and marrying his first wife later that same year. In January 1955, Tanguy suffered a fatal stroke at Woodbury, Connecticut.