Pierre Dmitrienko (French, 1925-1974)

The son of immigrant parents, his father Russian, his mother Greek, Dmitrienko was brought up within Russian culture. After studying at the Ecole des Beaux Art in Paris, from 1944-46, Dmitrienko was attracted to the Academies grouped around Montparnasse, wholly embracing the visionary character of abstraction, and frequenting the Grande Chaumière, he made his debut at the “Mains Eblouies” group at the Galerie Maeght in 1947. His success was rapid and from 1949, when he exhibited at the Hugo Gallery, in New York, he would go on to participate in numerous exhibitions in Zurich, Brussels, Berlin, Stockholm and London, in the next five years alone. He had his first one-man show in 1950, at the Galerie de la Paix, and in 1953 held the first of four exhibitions at the acclaimed Galerie Luciand Durand who was central to the championing of young abstract painters in Paris; before moving to the Galerie Jaques Massol in 1958, where he had annual exhibitions until 1961.

During the 1950’s Dmitrienko participated at the Salons: de Mai, 1950-63; d’Octobre, 1952; and des Réalites Nouvelles1957-60 & 62. Later, he was invited to exhibit in the French Pavilion, at the International Exhibition of Brussels, 1958; the Venice Biennale, 1960; and the Sao Paolo Biennale, 1961.

Dmitrienko was awarded a number of prestigious prizes, notably: the Prix Pacquement, 1954; the Premier Prix de la Biennale de Paris, 1959, the Guggenheim Prize NY, 1961; Carnegie Prize NY, 1963-67; First Prize for Young Painters at the Tokyo Biennale, 1964.