Louis Scutenaire
Encyclopedia
Louis Scutenaire was a poet
, anarchist, surrealist and civil servant. Born Jean Émile Louis Scutenaire in Ollignies, Belgium
; died in Brussels
.
, Paul Nougé
, Marcel Lecomte
and his own wife Irène Hamoir
. He studied law at the Free University of Brussels
(now split into the Université Libre de Bruxelles
and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
) and was a criminal lawyer from 1931 to 1944. In 1926 he discovered surrealism
and was a primary contributor to the Revue surréaliste. He was sympathetic to communism
during the 1930s and 1940s but as the truth about Joseph Stalin
's regime became more apparent, he grew disenchanted with it and became an anarchist. After the Second World War he became a civil servant in the Belgian Ministry of the Interior, a job he kept for the rest of his life.
Scutenaire grew disillusioned with the increasing commercialisation of Surrealism after the Second World War, but this did not apparently impair his close friendship with the most famous Belgian surrealist René Magritte
. Scutenaire and his wife would visit the Magritte home on Sundays, where Scutenaire would be invited to give titles to Magritte's recent paintings; 170 of the paintings still bear the titles that Scutenaire suggested. (He is also the model for the figure in Magritte's canvas Universal Gravitation.)
Scutenaire's published works include a series of books entitled Mes Inscriptions, collections of gnomic and mischievous aphorisms, as well as one of the earliest and most entertaining monographs on Magritte. He was awarded in 1985 the Grand Prix spécial de l'Humour noir in recognition of his achievements as a writer with a lifelong distrust of authority and institution.
He died twenty years to the hour after his friend Magritte, just after watching a television programme on the painter.
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, anarchist, surrealist and civil servant. Born Jean Émile Louis Scutenaire in Ollignies, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
; died in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
.
Life
Louis Scutenaire is chiefly remembered as a central figure in the Belgian Surrealist movement, along with René MagritteRené Magritte
René François Ghislain Magritte[p] was a Belgian surrealist artist. He became well known for a number of witty and thought-provoking images...
, Paul Nougé
Paul Nougé
Paul Nougé was a Belgian poet, philosopher and surrealist photographer who heavily influenced the Belgian Surrealist School of which he was a member....
, Marcel Lecomte
Marcel Lecomte
Marcel Lecomte was a Belgian writer, member of the Belgian surrealist movement. In 1918 he was introduced to dadaism and Eastern philosophy by Clément Pansaers. He also started to study literature and philosophy at the Université Libre de Bruxelles that year, but he left the studies in 1920...
and his own wife Irène Hamoir
Irène Hamoir
Irène Hamoir was a Belgian novelist and poet, the leading female member of the Belgian surrealist movement. Her poetry was published under the pen name Irine, and she appeared as Lorrie in the writings of her husband, Louis Scutenaire, and the works of René Magritte.Born in Saint-Gilles, Belgium...
. He studied law at the Free University of Brussels
Free University of Brussels
The Free University of Brussels was a university in Brussels, Belgium. In 1969, it split into the Université Libre de Bruxelles and the Dutch-speaking Vrije Universiteit Brussel....
(now split into the Université Libre de Bruxelles
Université Libre de Bruxelles
The Université libre de Bruxelles is a French-speaking university in Brussels, Belgium. It has 21,000 students, 29% of whom come from abroad, and an equally cosmopolitan staff.-Name:...
and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
The Vrije Universiteit Brussel is a Flemish university located in Brussels, Belgium. It has two campuses referred to as Etterbeek and Jette.The university's name is sometimes abbreviated by "VUB" or translated to "Free University of Brussels"...
) and was a criminal lawyer from 1931 to 1944. In 1926 he discovered surrealism
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
and was a primary contributor to the Revue surréaliste. He was sympathetic to communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
during the 1930s and 1940s but as the truth about Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
's regime became more apparent, he grew disenchanted with it and became an anarchist. After the Second World War he became a civil servant in the Belgian Ministry of the Interior, a job he kept for the rest of his life.
Scutenaire grew disillusioned with the increasing commercialisation of Surrealism after the Second World War, but this did not apparently impair his close friendship with the most famous Belgian surrealist René Magritte
René Magritte
René François Ghislain Magritte[p] was a Belgian surrealist artist. He became well known for a number of witty and thought-provoking images...
. Scutenaire and his wife would visit the Magritte home on Sundays, where Scutenaire would be invited to give titles to Magritte's recent paintings; 170 of the paintings still bear the titles that Scutenaire suggested. (He is also the model for the figure in Magritte's canvas Universal Gravitation.)
Scutenaire's published works include a series of books entitled Mes Inscriptions, collections of gnomic and mischievous aphorisms, as well as one of the earliest and most entertaining monographs on Magritte. He was awarded in 1985 the Grand Prix spécial de l'Humour noir in recognition of his achievements as a writer with a lifelong distrust of authority and institution.
He died twenty years to the hour after his friend Magritte, just after watching a television programme on the painter.
Sources
- André Souris, Paul Nougé et ses complices dans "Entretiens sur le surréalisme", sous la direction de Ferdinand AlquiéFerdinand AlquiéFerdinand Alquié was a French philosopher and member of the Académie des sciences morales et politiques.He taught at the lycée Louis-le-Grand and at the Sorbonne university. He was an instructor of Gilles Deleuze, who, according to Michael Hardt, charged him of drawing on biology, psychology, and...
, Mouton, Paris-La Haye, 1968. - Christian Bussy, Anthologie du surréalisme en Belgique, ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Gallimard,1972. - Marcel MariënMarcel MariënMarcel Mariën was a Belgian surrealist , poet, essayist, photographer, collagist, filmmaker, and maker of objects....
, L'activité surréaliste en Belgique (1924–1950), BruxellesBrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Lebeer-Hossmann, 1979. - René Magritte et le surréalisme en Belgique, Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, Bruxelles, 1982.
- Louis Scutenaire, Plein Chant n° 33-34, BassacBassacBassac may refer to:* BASSAC, the British Association of Settlements and Social Action Centres - a membership body for British community organisations, including members of the settlement movement...
, novembre 1986-janvier 1987. - Les écrits de Louis Scutenaire (De 1913 à 1987), 1. Poèmes et proses, note de Michel-Georges-Bernard, ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Éditions de l'Orycte, 29 juin 1987 [Textes présentés dans la chronologie de leur écriture]. - Le mouvement surréaliste à Bruxelles et en Wallonie (1924–1947), ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Centre Culturel Wallonie Bruxelles, 1988. - Raoul VaneigemRaoul VaneigemRaoul Vaneigem is a Belgian writer and philosopher. He was born in Lessines . After studying romance philology at the Free University of Brussels from 1952 to 1956, he participated in the Situationist International from 1961 to 1970...
, Louis Scutenaire, ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, collection Poètes d'aujourd'hui, Seghers, 1991 ISBN 2232103218, 190 p. - René Magritte, La période "vache", "Les pieds dans le plat" avec Louis Scutenaire, MarseilleMarseilleMarseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, Musée Cantini, 1992 ISBN 2711825914, 168 p. - Irène, Scut, Magritte & C°, BrusselsBrusselsBrussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Musée Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, 1996, 558 p. - Jean-Patrice Courtois, La grammaire inachevable de Louis Scutenaire, dans "Europe", "Les surréalistes belges", n° 912, Paris, avril 2005.
- Short biography in French
- Short tribute in English