Victor Arwas

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Victor Arwas (born June 29, 1937 in Cairo , Egypt , † February 23, 2010 in London , United Kingdom ) was a British art dealer , gallery owner , art collector , art historian , curator and non-fiction author , especially on topics such as Art Nouveau and Art Deco .

family

Arwas came from a Sephardic Jewish family who had been expelled from Spain at the time of the Inquisition . At the beginning of the First World War , his father, who also bore the name Victor, had to flee from Gaza as a British citizen from the Ottomans . On board a British warship he came to Alexandria , where he acquired a de facto monopoly for the transport of crude oil.

Here he married into a rich family. However, he separated from his first wife and married Gisele, a Viennese beauty who worked in the National Bank of Egypt. From this relationship, their only child, Victor, was born in 1937. In Great Britain, Arwa's father later invested in the cinema business with great success.

Life

Victor Arwas attended Victoria College in Cairo and later New York University . At the time of the Suez Crisis in 1956, he moved with his parents to London, where he settled permanently.

In 1969 Arwas opened his gallery Editions Graphiques on Clifford Street and Bond Street in central London. As a dealer and collector, he was passionately focused on the graphic and applied arts of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His inventory included works by Tiffany , Émile Gallé , Ferdinand Preiss , Demetre Chiparus , Félicien Rops , Aubrey Beardsley , Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec , Alphonse Mucha and James Tissot . As a curator, he has participated in 30 exhibitions in eight countries, often as a lender of works of art.

Victor Arwas died after a heart attack at the age of 72. He left behind his wife and business partner Gretha, whom he married in 1989. The marriage was childless.

Publications (selection)

Arwas is described in the literature as "one of the leading international experts of the Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods". He was the author of numerous non-fiction books on the subject.

  • Felicien Rops. Academy Editions, London 1972; St. Martin's Press, New York 1972.
  • Art deco sculpture. Chryselephantine statuettes of the twenties and thirties. Academy Editions, London 1975; St. Martin's Press, New York 1975.
  • Art deco. Academy Editions, London 1976; St. Martin's Press, New York 1976.
  • Belle époque. Posters & graphics. Academy Editions, London 1978; Rizzoli, New York 1978.
  • Berthon & Grasset. Rizzoli, New York 1978.
  • Alastair. Illustrator of decadence. Thames and Hudson, London 1979.
  • Alphonse Mucha. Master of Art Nouveau. Academy Editions London 1985; St. Martin's Press, New York 1985.
  • Glass. Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart 1987.
  • Glass. Art nouveau to art deco. HN Abrams, New York 1987.
  • Art deco sculpture. Academy Editions, 1992.
  • Art deco. HN Abrams, New York 1992.
  • Art of glass. Art nouveau to Art Deco. With Susan Newell. Andreas Papadakis Publisher, Windsor, Berks, England 1996.
  • Alphonse Mucha. The spirit of art nouveau. With Jana Brabcová-Orlíková, Anna Dvořák et al. Art Services International, Alexandria (VA) 1998.
  • Art Nouveau. From Mackintosh to Liberty. The birth of a style. Andreas Papadakis, London 2000.
  • Art Nouveau. The French aesthetic. Andreas Papadakis Publisher, London 2002.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ "... leading international expert ..." In: Andreas Papadakis: Art Nouveau an Architectural Indulgence: In Collaboration with The Victoria & Albert Museum.
  2. ↑ "an acknowledged world expert" In: Victor Arwas . In: The Telegraph, May 2, 2010.
  3. ↑ "... expert in the field of decorative arts who specializes in the art nouveau and art deco movements ..." In: Arwas, Victor. Contemporary Authors, encyclopedia.com
personal data
SURNAME Arwas, Victor
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British art dealer, art collector, curator, historian and author
DATE OF BIRTH June 29, 1937
PLACE OF BIRTH Cairo , Egypt
DATE OF DEATH February 23, 2010
Place of death London , UK