Damville (Normandy) 1875 – 1963 Puteaux

Born in 1875 in Damville in Normandy as Gaston Duchamp, he sought to distinguish himself from his brothers, the artist Marcel Duchamp and the sculptor Raymond Duchamp-Villon. Perhaps because of his appreciation of the poet Francois Villon, he changed his name to Jacques Villon. Early on, Villon created drawings for various publications such as L'Assiette au beurre, Le Chat Noir, and Le Rire. He executed a magnificent series of color aquatints from 1899 to 1906. In 1907, Villon produced a number of etchings which are some of the earliest Cubist/Golden Section style works in any medium. These experiments culminated in his great drypoints of 1913. Villon's studio at Puteaux brought together artists interested in the theories of the Section d'Or. Villon, along with Albert Gleizes and Juan Gris, was one of the few artists to make a successful and practical use of the Section d'Or and thus to develop a valid alternative to the Cubism of Picasso and Braque.