U.S. and France
Americans in France
RAY, Man (1890-1976)
Photographer, born in Philadelphia, PA
Man Ray arrived in Paris on July 14, 1921 at the age of 31. It was his first visit in Paris, and he was met by Marcel Duchamp, whom he had known in New York. Man Ray took a room Rue de la Condamine (17th) on the top floor and stayed for four months. He soon befriended with Dadaists Tristan Tzara. André Breton, Louis Aragon, and Francis Picabia, and eventually was the only American to be considered a member of the French Dada group. He had his first Paris exhibition in December 1921 in a small bookshop owned by Philippe Soupault, avenue de Lowendal (7th). Within three years, he became one of the most sought-after photographers in Paris. He worked on several avant-garde films too. In July 1922, he moved to Rue Campagne-Première 31 bis (14th) and stayed for several years. The well-known Montparnasse model Kiki had become his mistress and stayed with him for six years. He lived in Hollywood during World War II. He took a studio Rue Férou (6th) when he returned to France in 1951. Man Ray was happy to be back in Paris where he concentrated on painting and color photography. He died in Paris on November 18, 1976 at the age of 86. Today the studio contains a rich collection of his postwar work.
SARGENT, John Singer (1856-1925)
Painter, born in Florence, Italy
The son of American expatriate parents, Sargent had been encouraged by his mother to study art in Florence. In 1874, he entered the Paris studio of portraitist Carolus-Duran and the École des Beaux-Arts. He was influenced by Velazquez and joined the Impressionists circles (he was a close friend of Claude Monet). At the 1884 Paris Salon, he showed his now famous picture, Madame X. Lacking commissions in Paris, he moved to London in 1886, where he remained until his death, except for summer excursions on the Continent and in the United States.
SHAW, Irwin (1913-1984)
Writer, born in New York City, NY
By 1951, Shaw had already published several books, including bestseller The Young Lions (1948) based on his war experiences in Europe, and had worked on several Hollywood movies. That same year, he left the United States, living 25 years in Europe in such locations as Paris, the Riviera, and Swiss resorts. In Europe, Shaw wrote several other bestsellers, including Two Weeks in Another Town (1960) and Rich Man, Poor Man (1970). He left France in 1976. He died in 1984 in Davos, Switzerland.
STEIN, Gertrude (1874-1946)
Writer, born in Allegheny, PA
Gerstrude Stein lived in France most of her life. She was born in Pennsylvania and educated in California. After graduating in 1897 from Radcliffe, she spent two years at the John Hopkins Medical School. She arrived in France in 1902 and took an apartment the following year with her brother Leo, at 27 rue de Fleurus (6th). They were joined by Alice B.Toklas in 1910. At the beginning of World War I, Leo left for Italy and the two women stayed on until 1937. Stein began her art collection by buying the early works of Picasso, Matisse, Derain and other young painters. By the 1920's her salon, with walls covered by avant-garde paintings, attracted prominent writers and painters. She remained in France throughout WWII, staying in various country houses. She returned to Paris in December 1944. In the last years of her life she suffered from cancer. She died on 27 July 1946 in Neuilly-sur-Seine. She is buried in the Père-Lachaise Cemetery.
WHARTON, Edith (1862-1937)
Writer, born in New York City, NY
Born into a wealthy and prominent family, Edith Wharton married a Boston banker. Her first popular success came with The House of Mirth in 1905. The Whartons spent much time in Europe from 1906, and moved to France in 1907. After her divorce in 1913, Wharton maintained a residence in the U.S. but mostly spent the rest of her life in France. She became a literary hostess to young writers at her Paris apartment and her garden home in the south of France. Among her friends was Henry James, whom Wharton knew during the last 12 years of his life. French Ways and their Meanings, a collection of essays she wrote for serial publication during the last two years of WWI, was published in 1919. Her most famous novel, The Age of Innocence, was published in 1920 and received a Pulitzer Prize. She died in Saint-Brice-Sous-Forêt, near Paris. She is buried in the American Cemetery in Versailles.
WHISTLER, James (1834-1903)
Painter, born in Lowell, MA
In 1855, at the age of 21, Whistler resolved to become an artist and moved to Europe permanently. He settled in Paris first, where he studied at the Ecole Impériale et Spéciale de Dessin, before entering the Académie of Charles Gabriel Gleyre, an artist of the school of Ingres. He made copies in the Louvre for a living, and became a devotee of the cult of the Japanese print. He soon became associated with Manet, Fantin-Latour, Courbet, Daubigny and Monet. After 1859, he moved to London, but often returned to France. He maintained studios in Paris and London until his death, and participated in numerous exhibitions in both cities. His painting The White Girl, in particular, caused a sensation at the famous Paris Salon des Refusés in 1863. He died in London in 1903.
WRIGHT, Richard (1908-1960)
Writer, born in Roxie, MS
Richard Wright was born on a plantation and grew up in poverty. The publication of Native Son (1940) and Black Boy (1945) won him acclaim. In 1947, he settled in Paris as a permanent expatriate. He met among others Gertrude Stein, André Gide, and Léopold Senghor, and became part of a group of black expat American writers that also included Chester Himes and James Baldwin. In 1949, he joined George Plimpton and others in founding The Paris Review. While in France, he took a growing interest in anti-colonial movements and also travelled extensively, particularly in Africa. He died nearly penniless at the age of fifty-two in Paris. He was buried at the Père Lachaise cemetery.