Roger Coppe

Roger Coppe was a Belgian expressionist painter, sculptor, draughtsman and master glassmaker. He was born February 10, 1912 in Flawinne, near Namur. Son of an official, his family moved to Comines in 1938, where he studied classical human sciences. Subsequently, he studied decorative arts in Tournai. He became professor of history of art and aesthetics at Saint-Henri (Comines) College in 1952. At the same time, he developed his career as a draughtsman, painter and sculptor. Having become a master glassmaker, he had a stained glass workshop for nearly thirty years and restored windows of many churches in Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Congo. From 1980, his production focuses on drawing and watercolour, developing his style between a lyrical abstraction and a representation of essential lines strongly influenced by Bacon, Balthus, Dix, Daumier, etc., where the nude became essential in his work and followed aesthetic canons that are far removed from contemporary aseptic aesthetics.

An unconditional admirer of the work of the French poet Pierre Emmanuel (1916-1984), Coppe proceeds to a direct graphic transcription of his verses, among which is this work entitled Naked Back, produced in 1991 in pencil and watercolour.

Roger Coppe died in Mouscron (Belgium) on October 5, 2012 at the age of 84 years.

Artist: Roger Coppe (1928-2012).
Signed and dated on the bottom left.
Medium: Pencil and watercolour on paper.
Condition: Excellent.
Dimension: 25 x 32 cm. / 9 ½ x 11 ½ in. (visible)
Frame: 47 x 55 cm. / 18 ½ x 21 ½ in. Very good condition. Mat and glass.
Provenance: France.