Pierre Ambrogiani, The Boxer (circa 1950)

PIERRE AMBROGIANI (Ajaccio 1907 - Allauch 1985) The Boxer Circa 1950 Gouache on heavy paper 51.5 x 65.5 cm Signed: Pierre Ambrogiani Pierre Ambrogiani, born in 1907 in Ajaccio, was the son of a Corsican family in Marseille. A self-taught artist, he worked as a postman until 1937, but then quickly became one of the leading figures in Marseille's painting scene. In 1943, he began frequenting the Café Péano in the Old Port, and a vibrant cultural scene developed around it, with Péano becoming a central hub of artistic life in Marseille. Ambrogiani possessed a natural talent, great graphic ability, a boundless imagination, and a preference for bold, vibrant colors. He sketched brilliantly and quickly, like this magnificent boxer defined by broad strokes of orange gouache. It is a large drawing on a large sheet of paper where the power of Ambrogiani's lines combines with the dynamism of the boxer himself.