| Marc
Lacroix, French (1927 - 2007)
Marc Lacroix was born in 1927 and raised in Paris. At fourteen
he got his first camera from his uncle and against his parents'
wishes, he began to take his first photographs in the street
and public parks of Paris. This hobby became more and more
a vocation for Lacroix, who decided to focus his life goals
on photography.
After high school, Lacroix enlisted in the French Army and
was soon sent to serve in North Africa. During his one year
in the army, he took thousands of photographs featuring the
people and landscapes of Morocco. Although still in his early
twenties, his photos attracted the attention of French publishers,
and after leaving the army, he worked as a photographer in
Morocco, reporting to French publications specializing in architecture
and interior design.
In 1965 he returned to France where he became friendly with
different artists, jazz musicians, singers, painters, and sculptors,
and consequently took numerous photographs of them for art
magazines and movie reviews. He also worked in a movie production
and improved his experience in diversity and quality.
In France, Lacroix continue to work for art and architectural
magazines. Gaining increased recognition he was asked to act
as a photographer for major European museums including, Chagall
Museum in Nice, Palais des Doges in Venice and Florence, Prince
Rainier's Palace in Monte Carlo, for Prince Louis de Polignac,
and the French Department of Historical Monuments for Rene
Briat.
During this period, Lacroix became a specialist in photographing
classical and historical monuments. He was a perfectionist
with a natural gift for evoking the mood of by-gone eras. He
applied his knowledge of precise lighting and setting to both
his images paralleled the interest and research of another
artist, Salvador Dali.
Dali was studying Vermeer's technique attracted by his distinctive
use of light and the simpleness of his painting. Inevitably,
one memorable day, Marc Lacroix met Salvador Dali as a result
of their mutual interests in special photographic effects.
The master of surrealism encouraged Lacroix to persevere.
In 1971, Dali and Lacroix produced a special Christmas edition
of VOGUE Magazine, in which Lacroix's photographs in combination
with Dali's pictures became famous. Later, Dali worked with
Lacroix to develop a new technique - stereoscopic painting
(three dimensional painting).
In 1974, at the opening of the DALI MUSEUM in Figueras, Spain,
Dali reserved a large room for Lacroix's photographs. The following
years the NIKON Gallery in Paris exhibited Lacroix's photographs
in conjunction with the work of Robert Descharnes, a writer
and photographer who also worked with Dali. In addition to
his collaboration with Dali, Lacroix photographed major private
and public oil painting collections; the Bank Lambert Collection
in Brussels, the Durand Ruel in Paris, Picasso's Museum in
Barcelona and The Centre Pompidou, Beaubourg, Paris.
In conclusion, Marc Lacroix studied and became equally successful
in various photographic fields, although his work with Dali
contributed the most to this fame. At this time, his photographs
are permanently displayed in the DALI MUSEUM in Figueras, Spain.
Anyone who has seen his portraits of Dali can admire the fantastic
diversity of character of the model reflected in each photograph
with an incredible sensitivity. Lacroix needs to know the personality
of his model intimately and especially with Salvador Dali.
It is obvious that the communion has been made. The photographs
are a tribute to these two artists, Dali as subject and Lacroix
as creator. In this case, surrealism exists on both sides of
the camera.
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