Henri Dobler (1863–1941) was a Swiss art collector, painter, poet and art critic. He is best known for refurbishing the Pavillon Vendôme in Aix-en-Provence, France, from 1906 to 1914.

Henri Dobler
Born1863
Died1941
NationalitySwiss
Occupation(s)Art collector
Painter
Poet
Art critic

Biography edit

Early life edit

Henri Dobler was born in 1863 in Switzerland. His parents sold silk and textiles in Marseille.[1]

Adult life edit

He started his career in the French Army.[1] In 1895, he gave up on his military ambitions and focused on art.[1] He started collecting art, wrote a poetry book, and started painting.[1] His paintings dealt with mythology and romanticism.[1] However, it is thought that his paintings were not very successful because of a personal and vocal rift he had with Paul Cézanne, whose work he called "dirty paintings" and "the biggest scam of the century".[1]

In 1906, he purchased the Pavillon Vendôme in Aix-en-Provence and refurbished it until 1914.[1][2][3][4][5] He also took pains to add furniture specifically from Provence to the house.[1] Meanwhile, he also wrote books about the history of architecture in Aix-en-Provence and Marseille.[6]

Hubert de Courcy painted his portrait.[1]

Death edit

He died in 1941.

Bibliography edit

  • La Petite Sirène (1899)
  • La maison de rêve (1900)
  • Les Vestiges des architectures et des arts décoratifs provençaux aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles à Aix-en-Provence (1910)
  • Les Vestiges des architectures et des arts décoratifs provençaux aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles à Marseille (1913)
  • Six mois de journalisme indépendant en province (1922)
  • Le cadre de la vie mondaine à Aix-en-Provence aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles: Boudoirs et jardins (1928)

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Le Pavillon Vendôme rend justice à Henri Dobler, La Provence, September 02, 2012
  2. ^ Emmanuelle Gall, Henri Dobler - La maison de rêve, Télérama
  3. ^ Maurice Pezet, La Provence et l'amour, Fernand Lanore, 1984, p. 121 [1]
  4. ^ Jean-Paul Labourdette, Dominique Auzias, Olivia Ferrandino, Olivier Gressot, Aix-en-Provence, Le Petit Futé, p. 45 [2]
  5. ^ Philippe Réjany, Aix-en-Provence rend hommage à son bienfaiteur Henri Dobler , France Télévisions, 18/07/2012
  6. ^ Nathalie Ferrand, Locus in Fabula: La Topique de L'espace Dans Les Fictions Françaises D'Ancien Régime, Peeters Publishers, 2004, p. 614 [3]