Soutine kept a beef carcass hanging in his Paris studio for weeks, painting it obsessively while neighbours called the police about the smell. When the meat decayed beyond use, he had fresh blood delivered to restore its colour. The episode captures something essential about his method: a ferocious physicality that treated paint as matter rather than medium.
Key facts
- Lived
- 1893–1943, Russian
- Movement
- Works held in
- 45 museums[8]
Biography
He was born in Smilavichy, in the Russian Empire (now Belarus), in 1893, grew up in a Hasidic Jewish family, studied in Vilna, and arrived in Paris in 1913. His style, writhing forms, thick impasto, colours pushed to the edge of coherence, bridges Expressionism and Abstract Expressionism. Willem de Kooning later cited him as a direct influence.
He lived in poverty and obscurity until the American collector Albert Barnes bought a large group of his paintings in 1923, transforming his circumstances overnight. He died during the German occupation of France in 1943, at fifty, after surgery for a perforated ulcer.
Timeline
- 1893Born in Smilavichy, near Minsk, in the Russian Empire (now Belarus), the tenth of eleven children in a poor Jewish family.
- 1913At 20, arrived in Paris and settled in La Ruche, a communal artists' studio in Montparnasse. He enrolled at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts under Fernand Cormon.
- 1915At 22, met Amedeo Modigliani in Paris through the sculptor Jacques Lipchitz. The two became close friends, and Modigliani painted his portrait several times.
- 1919At 26, travelled to Ceret in the French Pyrenees at the urging of dealer Leopold Zborowski. He spent three years there, producing over 200 intensely worked landscapes.
- 1923At 30, the American collector Albert Barnes bought around 60 of his paintings in Paris in a single visit, transforming Soutine's fortunes overnight.
- 1927At 34, held his first solo exhibition at Galerie Bing in Paris. His reputation as a major Expressionist painter was now firmly established.
- 1940At 47, fled Paris as the Nazi occupation began. As a Jewish artist, he spent the remaining years in hiding in the French countryside, moving frequently.
- 1943Died of a perforated ulcer at 50 in Paris on 9 August after a desperate 24-hour journey from his hiding place to reach a surgeon. He was buried at Montparnasse Cemetery.
Notable Works
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Where to See Chaïm Soutine
1 museum worldwide.
-
1 works
Musée d'Art Moderne de Fontevraud
Fontevraud, France
Related Artists
Frequently Asked Questions
Chaim soutine art style?
Chaïm Soutine's style of applying paint was quite different from that of Georges Rouault, but his wild, chaotic spirit is similar to the Frenchman. He was considered a Parisian Expressionist and belonged to the "School of Paris".Chaim soutine's painting style is known for which quality?
Chaïm Soutine's painting style is known for his style of applying thickly encrusted paint. His wild, chaotic spirit is also a notable quality.How did chaim soutine die?
Chaïm Soutine died in 1943 at the age of 50.When was chaim soutine born?
Chaïm Soutine was born in 1893 in Russia. Chaïm Soutine died in 1943, aged 50.Who was chaim soutine?
Chaïm Soutine was a Russian painter of Belarusian Jewish origin. He made a major contribution to the Expressionist movement while living in Paris.Chaim soutine art movement?
Chaïm Soutine made a major contribution to the Expressionist movement while living in Paris. He also belonged to the "School of Paris".
Sources
Editorial draws on the following primary and tertiary references for Chaïm Soutine.
- [1] academic Chaim Soutine | Expressionist, Painter, Paris Used for: biography.
- [2] book Amedeo Modigliani, Delphi Complete Paintings of Amedeo Modigliani (Illustrated) (Delphi Masters of Art Book 27) Used for: biography.
- [3] book guggenheim-vangoghexpressio00gogh Used for: biography.
- [4] book Masterpieces of western art : a history of art in 900 individual studies from the Gothic to the present day Used for: biography.
- [5] museum Chaïm Soutine - Centre Pompidou Used for: biography.
- [6] museum Chaïm Soutine | MoMA Used for: biography.
- [7] museum Chaim Soutine | National Gallery of Art Used for: biography.
- [8] museum Chaim Soutine - View of Cagnes - The Metropolitan Museum of Art Used for: museum holdings.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-05-03. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
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