Louis TOFFOLI (1907–1999), Rest, 1991

Color lithograph, paper, 42 x 34 cm (inside the passe-partout measuring 60 x 52 cm);
, numbered in pencil 203/250 lower left and signed in pencil by the artist
“Toffoli” lower right
References: Catalogue Raisonné No. 244
Louis TOFFOLI—a French painter of Italian descent, born in Trieste,
Italy. In 1930, Louis Toffoli fled Mussolini’s regime and
emigrated to Paris. He lived on Rue Myrha in the heart of the Goutte d’Or district,
without documents or money. Beginning in 1935, he exhibited at leading
Parisian salons: the Salon d’Automne, the Salon des Indépendants, and the Salon des Peintres
Témoins de leur Temps. Louis Toffoli is best known for his colorful,
fragmentary figurative paintings and landscapes. His style is characterized
by clarity and light: In his works, light seems to permeate
all elements, creating an impression of purity and deep intimacy with
the depicted figures. He often achieved this by breaking down his impersonal
figures into various overlapping parts, which gave them an ethereal appearance.
An interest in human movement and labor: One of the main themes of his
art was the world, where he depicted people engaged in various forms of labor.
He painted what he loved and felt, passionately depicting picturesque scenes of everyday life.
In his paintings, Louis Toffoli often used the oil-chalk technique, which
allowed light to permeate the surface—often an oil-soaked canvas—in a distinctive way.
He was also a prolific lithographer, and the technique of lithography helped him popularize
his paintings.
His works can be found in many museums around the world, particularly in Germany,
Brazil, Spain, the Netherlands, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, Sweden, and the
United States.