The Life and Art of Henri Goetz
Born in New York City, Henri Goetz was a French American surrealist painter and engraver. His early years were marked by a deep-seated drive to create, even as a child he felt the frustration of clumsy drawings. After studying at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, he moved to Paris in 1930, having saved money from working as a golf caddie and an apprentice electrical engineer. In Paris, he attended the Académie Colarossi, the Académie Julian, and the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, while also frequenting the studio of Amédée Ozenfant.
Goetz’s life was deeply intertwined with his wife, Christine Boumeester, a Dutch painter. Together, they navigated the challenges of World War II, working with the French Resistance to forge identity documents and print leaflets. Following the Liberation of Paris, Goetz contributed to the radio program The World of Paris. His artistic legacy is notably defined by his invention of the carborundum printmaking process in the 1960s, a technique that was later utilized by many other printmakers worldwide.
Teaching and Technical Mastery
Throughout his career, Goetz was a dedicated educator. He taught at several institutions, including:
His teaching was characterized by a lack of tuition fees, as he never charged for his lessons. Beyond his pedagogical work, Goetz was a prolific etcher and researcher of pastels. He and his wife collaborated extensively on book illustrations, utilizing a printing press modified with the help of Fin, the nephew of Pablo Picasso. His technical contributions to printmaking, particularly through his treatise La gravure au carborundum, solidified his place in the history of modern printmaking.
