Elie Jean Vezien

Born 1890

Elie Jean Vezien was born in Marseille, France in 1890. He was a student of Jules Félix Coutan and Auguste Henri Carli. Vezien directed l’Académie des Beaux-Arts de Marseille until 1960.

Beginning in 1921 Vezien exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Français, where he was a member of the Sociétaire hors-Concours. He won the Prix de Rome and an honorable mention in 1921. He won a silver medal in 1924 and gold medal in 1931. He was awarded the Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur in 1935. Vezien won a gold medal in 1937 at l’Exposition Internationale de Paris. He was the designer of the decoration in the chapel of he Ossuaire de Douaumont.

Vezien, like many artists of this period, accepted commissions for both religious and commercial projects. His sculptures are found in the Hotel de Ville in Paris and two churches, Notre Dame de la Garde in Marseille and Saint-Jean-de-Latran in Rome.

Vezien’s sculptures exemplify the more classical influences of Art Deco figures. His robed women are elegant and posed like goddesses.

Vezien’s work is in the collection of the Musée du Petit Palais in Paris.