Russian-born French painter, Nicolas de Staël, was born Jan 5, 1914. Despite growing recognition internationally after WW II, and his friendship with many influential artists, such as Braque, the Delauneys, Jean Arp, Johnny Friedlander, a.m.o., he found it hard to adapt to the harshness of the art world. By 1953, de Staël’s depression led him to seek isolation in the south of France. He suffered from exhaustion, insomnia and depression. In the wake of a disappointing meeting with a disparaging art critic on March 16, 1955 he committed suicide. He leapt to his death from his eleventh story studio terrace, in Antibes.
Above - Nicolas de Staël: Parc de sceaux, 1952 - oil on canvas (Phillips Collection)