Katia Granoff, free figure and pioneer

Founded in 1924 under the leadership of the Russian-born writer Katia Granoff, the Larock-Granoff gallery is a pioneer. Indeed, today it is the oldest family gallery in Paris still in operation, boldly erected by one of the first female gallery owners. Naturalized French in 1937, Katia Granoff obtained a degree in literature in Switzerland before arriving in France in the 1920s.

 

Employed as a secretary at the Salon des Tuileries, she was introduced to art in the heart of a bustling Paris, celebrating creation with a desire as strong as that of healing the wounds of the Great War. Admiring those who paint to rebuild better, she highlights the work of Marc Chagall – whom she will support after he was ousted from the Salon des Tuileries. Neither the loss of her gallery on two occasions nor the Second World War darkened the aura of Katia Granoff, whose influence illuminated the works of Claude Monet in particular. Thus, she was one of the first to reconsider and promote the Water Lilies series in the mid-1950s, at a time when art dealers were shunning what they called “blind people's painting”. A hailed success which since that time has definitively established the reputation of the Larock-Granoff gallery, established in Paris at 13, quai de Conti and in the province, in Honfleur, where impressionism and contemporary art radiate. Katia Granoff, who died in 1989 at the age of 93, paved the way for curation.

 

Also a poet, acclaimed for The Cursed Lovers and Anthology of Russian Poetry, she will be honored with the Legion of Honor and the National Order of Merit.

Clairvoyance in inheritance

With a brave heart, nothing is impossible in art. A motto that drives Edouard Larock – great-grandnephew of the founder, curator at heart -, director of the gallery since 2019. Contemporary, modern, impressionist art, and primitive arts are thus always represented by Larock-Granoff, emissary of a plurality which appeals to collectors and neophytes alike. Alongside the abstract paintings of Jean Messagier (1920-1999) or the iconic surrealist works of Joan Miró (1893-1983), new creations emerge that go beyond the frame. A designer who worked in the studios of Patricia Urquiola and India Mahdavi, Marie-Victoire Winckler creates glass and ceramic sculptures similar to totems to grace the interiors of aesthetes. Also, the gallery's representation of artists with complementary techniques honors the spirit of Katia Granoff, emancipated from conventions, because loyal to absolute emotion. A reckless philosophy which offers the family institution the privilege of celebrating its 100^th candle today.