Saïd Aït Youssef (1920-1986) - Gouache on paper - Figures in the countryside

Saïd Aït Youssef (1920-1986) Gouache on paper. Figures in the countryside. Signed and dated 1971 lower right. Dimensions: 22 X 46.5 cm. Very good condition, stains in the upper left. *Born in 1920 in the Aït Bougmez Valley in the High Atlas Mountains, Aït Youssef worked as a shepherd until the age of 18, then as a soldier in the French army. In 1947, he was sent to Indochina where he was taken prisoner. He returned to Morocco in 1951 and worked as a porter in a hospital in Marrakech. He began painting as a self-taught artist; Farid Belkahia and Jacques Azéma, who discovered his work, invited him to participate in a group exhibition. His first solo exhibition took place in 1959 in Marrakech. Dimensions: 22 X 46.5 cm. Very good condition, stains in the upper left His work is part of the collection of the Jean Dubuffet Foundation, Musée d’Art Brut, in Paris, and the Laval Museum in France. He died in 1986 in Agadir. Aït Youssef reproduced childhood memories, landscapes that had marked him, and scenes of everyday life (festivals, weddings, and equestrian displays) on his canvases in light colors. His native valley provided the raw material for his inspiration. His paintings evoke a peaceful and simple rural atmosphere, imbued with nostalgia.