Emmanuel LE BARS 1918- 2004 Charcoal drawing signed lower ce - Lot 23

Born in Brest in 1918, Emmanuel Le Bars grew up in Quimper in a family where everyone drew, following in the footsteps of his father, an art teacher. Emmanuel went on to study medicine and joined the navy. After graduating, he returned to Quimper and took up wood engraving with Jean Laforgue at the Lycée de Quimper. He took part in the Salon des Echanges run by Jean Lachaud, then in 1938-1939 in the Salons des Peintres de la Bretagne in Quimper. Breton painter Jim Sevellec encourages him to paint.

Almost self-taught in painting, he treats portraits and landscapes like natural history documents. He soon had a string of one-man shows in Douarnenez, Quimper and Scaër. He was admitted to the Salon des Artistes français in 1947.

He practiced medicine while continuing to paint: he combined his two passions by participating in the Salon des Médecins Peintres in Paris, from 1955 to 1968. At the same time, he studied sculpture and ceramics. In 1980, he took part in the Atelier du Thabor exhibition in Rennes. He continued to exhibit with the Atelier du Thabor until 1994.