Biography of Louis Cattiaux
Louis Cattiaux was born in Valenciennes on August 17, 1904. He lost his mother at birth. His childhood was not very happy, and he was raised by his older sister.
After the war of 1914/1918, he joined the army occupying the Rhine.
In 1928, he spent some time in Dahomey, working for a commercial firm. Disillusioned and ill, he returned to France. He brought back a series of paintings and watercolors. He devoted himself increasingly to painting and began to frequent avant-garde literary and artistic circles.
In 1932 he married Henriette Péré. They settled at number 3 Rue Casimir Périer in Paris where they created an art gallery called Gravitation. The Cattiauxs had a difficult life and poverty was their companion. Passionate about alchemy, Cattiaux spent long days at the Arsenal library, which was rich in manuscripts. His wife, meanwhile, worked to provide for the couple; she always showed him great devotion.
In 1938 he began writing The Lost Message, which later became The Lost Message. He exhibited numerous times at the Berthe Weill Gallery.
In 1942, he participated in the Tuileries exhibition "Etapes du nouveau art contemporain" organized by Gaston Diehl. In 1944, he painted a self-portrait for the Message Retrouvé; he became friends with Lanza del Vasto and painted his portrait (opposite).
In 1945, Poèmes du fainéant appeared. Cattiaux wanted above all to devote himself to the Quest, and to writing The Message Retrouvé, which he had been working on continuously for many years.
In 1946, the first edition of the first twelve books of The Message Regained appeared in Paris. He exhibited in Valenciennes.
In 1950, he sent two of his works, Maria Paritura (1) and Les trois nuits de l'être, to the "Salon d'Automne" in Paris. Although they were accepted by the jury and included in the catalogue, they were not exhibited. Cattiaux was terribly disappointed. At this time, he met and became friends with Emmanuel and Charles d'Hooghvorst, as well as other members of their family. This gave rise to an intense correspondence.
In 1952, he stayed in Cassis. Cattiaux produced his last major series of paintings and from then on, he devoted himself entirely to the search for the Absolute.
On July 16, 1953, Louis Cattiaux left this world.
In 1954, Les Poèmes was published. Excerpts from Physics and Metaphysics of Painting were published in a Swiss journal, Inconnues No. 9, as well as an article by Emmanuel d'Hooghvorst: "The Prophetic Message of Louis Cattiaux."
In 1956, the first edition of the forty books of The Message Rediscovered was published by Denoël in Paris.
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(1) The painting Maria Paritura appears on the Home page
of this site
