Private collection, France
Born Marcel Dreyfus in Paris on October 1899, he showed a talent for art at an early age but began his adult life as an engineer. By the age of 23 years, he became a professional self-taught artist, setting up a studio in Arles in 1922. His career flourished as a landscape artist – painting views of the surrounding countryside. Much of Dyf’s influence and inspiration came from the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artists; among his favourites was Pierre Renoir.
Soon his work began to attract attention from collectors and dealers and it was not long before he began exhibiting at the Salon des Artistes Français, the Salon d’Automne and the Salon des Tuileries.
By 1935 Dyf had returned to Paris from the countryside and in World War II joined the Resistance based in Correze. Subsequently in 1950 he had set up a studio in Cannes. A few years later he met his wife, Claudine and they were married in 1965. They spent many years together, travelling the world in search of subject matter, spending each summer at their home in Brittany.
By this time Dyf was famed for his impressionistic landscapes, still-lives, and portraits. His paintings had been exhibited throughout the world, with shows in England, America, Canada, Germany and Algeria. Today he is considered one of the last of the true Impressionist artists. Dyf died in September 1985.
