His remarkable potential for artistic modernization and his versatile talents make André Derain one of the most outstanding artists of the late 19th and early 20th century. Trained in Paris, among others, at the renowned Académie Julian, André Derain, together with Henri Matisse and Maurice de Vlaminck, is regarded a protagonist of Fauvism. His early period of creation was dominated by merry, colorful and exuberant paintings. A new period of creation was introduced under the influence of Pablo Picasso and accordingly followed a Cubist orientation. In the following, neo-classicist tendencies left traces in his work.
Parallel to his delicate oeuvre of paintings, André Derain also created impressive sculptures, which, in the sense of early Cubist sculpting, is based on the block. The comprehensive oeuvre of André Derain is completed by stage designs for theater and opera as well as by book illustrations. Works by André Derain, who can definitely be described as a multitalent, are in possession of renowned museums all over the world.