BIOGRAPHY

1910 : Paul (Prosper-Georges) Daviaud is born on February 27, 1910, in Viarmes (Seine-et-Oise), to Guillaume Daviaud and Félicie Ursin. His father establishes a zinc roofing and plumbing business and opens a hardware shop on the village’s main street.
 

1924 : He begins drawing and painting landscapes and still lifes.
 

1930 : Enters the Académie Julian, where he studies drawing and academic painting. That same year, he also receives training in fresco techniques under the master Marzocchi de Belluci.
 

1931–1934 : Studies at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. He learns printmaking techniques under the master Dezarrois, and later with studio heads Lucien Pénat, Henri Le Riche, and Louis Busière. He forms a close and admiring friendship with Busière, who later offers him the opportunity to rent his studio at 27 rue Saint-André-des-Arts in Paris.
 

1933 : Participates in the Salon des Artistes Français, where he is awarded a bronze medal.
 

1935–1939 : Studies at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, where he refines his practice of intaglio printmaking.
 

1935 : Enters the Prix de Rome competition, where he is ranked sixth finalist. He also receives a gold medal for the Prix Jean Peccard (awarded hors concours).

1938 : Enters the Prix de Rome competition again and is awarded second finalist.
 

1938–1939 : Participates in the Stillman Foundation competition and receives an award.
 

1939–1943 : Mobilized during the war. Taken prisoner, he is interned at Stalag VIIB, then sent as a laborer to a farm near Ulm, Germany. He continues to draw.
 

1940 : His parents die as a result of bombings.
 

1943 : Released, he returns to his family home in Viarmes, finding himself without close family.
 

1944 : Awarded the Grand Prix de Rome in intaglio printmaking for The Angel of Death.
 

1944–1945 : Teaches at the École des Beaux-Arts in Versailles.
 

1946–1948 : Resides as a fellow at the Villa Medici in Rome. There he meets, among others, Raymond Gallois-Montbrun, Pierre Petit, and Pierre Sancan, forming lasting friendships. He also associates with Italian painters, notably Gino Severini.
 

1947–1956 : His paintings are acquired annually by the French State until 1956.
 

1948 : Moves away from printmaking and from classical academic art, turning toward abstract painting. He presents a solo exhibition in Rome, inaugurated by the French Embassy. His friend Gino Severini writes a dedication for the exhibition catalogue.
 

1949–1952 : In 1949, he exhibits for the first time at the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles, presenting three abstract compositions alongside artists such as Soulages, Poliakoff, Nicolas de Staël, Hartung, Kupka, Sonia Delaunay, and Coppel. He continues to participate annually until 1952.
 

1955–1956 : Participates in a group exhibition at the Galerie Bernheim-Jeune (Paris).
 

1956 : Participates in a group exhibition at Galerie Bassano (Paris). Exhibits at the 36th Salon de l’Artistique de L’Isle-Adam, where he is awarded the Palette d’Or prize.
 

1957 : Marries the Belgian painter and ceramist Francine Quersin. The couple settles in Brussels.
 

1959 : Solo exhibition at Galerie Europe, directed by Paul Heim (Brussels).
 

1962 : Birth of his son, Gilles, in Uccle, Belgium.
 

1971 : Returns to Viarmes. He begins to design and build a second studio in a former shed adjoining the family home. He continues his pictorial research, exploring new forms and compositions, working steadily in his studio away from the Parisian gallery scene.
 

1971–1985 : Exhibits annually at the Salons des Arts of Cergy-Pontoise.
 

1978 : Victim of fraud by an art dealer to whom he had entrusted nearly 300 works. These were neither returned nor paid for. Some are believed to have been dispersed on the market without evaluation by recognized experts.
 

1985 : Participates in a group exhibition at the Salon de l’Artistique of L’Isle-Adam.
 

2001 : Dies on May 10 in Viarmes at the age of 91, following a heart attack.
 

2007 : Retrospective exhibition in Viarmes organized by the municipality.