Art Appreciation
Born on December 26, 1883, Maurice Utrillo was a French painter from Montmartre quarter in Paris known for cityscapes.
There is a fascinating history on Maurice, when he was a baby. His mom, Suzanne Valadon, was the model for artists Berthe Morisot, Renoir, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and Edgar Degas.
As told by Diego Rivera, "After Maurice was born to Suzanne Valadon, she went to Renoir, for whom she had modeled nine months previously. Renior looked at the baby and said, 'He can't be mine, the color is terrible!' Next she went to Degas, for whom she had also modeled. He said, "He can't be mine, the form is terrible! At a cafe, Valadon saw an artist she knew named Miguel Utrillo, to whom she spilled her woes. The man told her to call the baby Utrillo: "I would be glad to put my name to the work of either Renior or Degas!'"
In 1904, Utrillo took up painting, at the suggestion by his mother. He drew and painted what he saw in Montmartre. By 1920, his work garnered international attention. A few years later, the French government awarded him the Cross of the Légion d'honneur.
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