Theo Tobiasse

  Theo Tobiasse (1927-2012) was born in Israel in 1927 of parents who had just arrived from Lithuania then returned to Kovno when he was still young, then settled in Paris where his father, a typographer, hoped to find work. His work owes the atmosphere of exile which envelops it entirely to that never-ending train journey experienced by a little boy forced to leave the familiar banks of the Nieman for those, initially unwelcoming, of the Seine.  He spent his adolescence with his parents hiding in their tiny apartment in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, from July 1942 to August 1944, to the the thud of Nazi boots in the streets and in the hall where they were very nearly discovered.  When Theo Tobiasse finally saw daylight again at the end of his adolescent years, he had amassed a large file of drawings, of all different kinds and all completed during his forced confinement. They soon enabled him to find employment with various advertising companies, in spite of his very brief time spent at an art school in Paris at the beginning of the German Occupation, before the laws of discrimination forced him into hiding.  He designed and created window displays of luxury goods on the Gaubourg St-Honore, and designed several tapestry patterns for the "Salon de l'Imagerie". For more than fifteen years, Theo Tobiasse created designs for advertising, first in Paris, then in Nice, where he moved in 1950. In 1960, his work was noticed at an exhibition of young artists at the Palais de la Mediterranee in Nice and he won first prize. From then on art galleries featured him in one-man shows in cities such as New York, Paris, Tel Aviv, Tokyo and Caracas.  In 1970, he moved into his studio on Quai Rauba-Capeu, overlooking the Port of Nice. In 1976 he moved again to St. Paul-de-Vence where he rediscovered both the sky of Jerusalem and that of Florence. It was in Nice, the city he had adopted when he left Paris, that his pictorial expression came into its own.   Since 1980, Theo Tobiasse has travelled a great deal in the United States. On a detour, via Mexico, he discovered the impressive Aztec sites of the Yucatan, whose sculptures and engraved stones left their mark on him for a certain period. Fascinated by New York, he decided to find a place where he could work for several months every year. Thus, he now divides his time between St. Paul-de-Vence and New York. Many exhibitions and one-man shows have been held throughout the world, providing milestones for his work that is to be found in the catalogues of many International museums. Theo Tobiasse has created monumental works such as the fountain entitled "L'Enfant fou" for the Arenas Business Centre at Nice Airport, and stained-glass windows for various institutions in Strasbourg and Nice. Theo Tobiasse also discovered a passion for ceramics, producing pottery and dishes, as well as a series of small bronze sculptures. He also designed costumes and stage-set models for Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion".