Christian Bérard: Eccentric Modernist

Painter, illustrator, decorator, and tastemaker Christian Bérard was a central figure in the creative heart of Paris when art and fashion in the city mingled at their apex.

Christian Bérard (1902-1949) was a multidisciplinary artist whose talents can't be associated with a single school or style; his work sheds irreducible light onto his era, which continues to captivate today. Bérard painted ethereal figures and sublimated his high-fashion illustrations with a sharp and witty hand. He lived passionately and sought out enchantment in all forms--from high society to city life, fashion to theater, and stage-set design to interiors. He lived with the Russian poet, dancer, and librettist Boris Kochno, collaborated with creative powerhouses such as Jean-Michel Frank, Christian Dior, George Balanchine, and Elsa Schiaparelli, and designed rugs by Cogolin for Nelson Rockefeller.

Drawn to theater and inspired by the classical world, he worked with Louis Jouvet and Jean Cocteau, creating the production design and costumes for Cocteau's masterpiece Beauty and the Beast. A regular at café society events, he contributed to and designed covers for Vogue and Harper's Bazaar.

This book, illustrated primarily with works from private collections, celebrates Bérard's vision--oscillating between seriousness and light, melancholy and joie de vivre, nostalgia and revival--that forever inspires collectors and aesthetes.