SwissArtGallery · Documented identity
Under the name Arman, Armand Pierre Fernandez (1928–2005) developed a body of work in which the object first intervenes through its traces, and later through its direct presence. After the baccalauréat, he studied at the École des arts décoratifs de Nice, then at the École du Louvre; in Nice, he met Yves Klein and Claude Pascal in 1947. From 1953 to 1956, he worked on a series of abstract paintings, presented at his first solo exhibition, at the Galerie du Haut Pavé in Paris in 1956. Begun in the same year, the «Cachets» series is based on impressions of inked or painted objects; from 1957, the «allures d’objets» preceded their direct incorporation into his works.
Objects also became the material for acts of transformation: the «Colères» concern their violent dismantling, while the «Combustions», dated 1963, involve their destruction by fire. In October 1960, with «Le Plein», Arman filled the Iris Clert gallery with selected discarded objects and the contents of rubbish bins. As part of his collaboration with Régie Renault, he made more than 110 works between 1967 and 1974.
This exploration also took on a monumental dimension in public space: Accumulation musicale was installed at Parco Sempione in Milan in 1971, and Long Term Parking, made in Jouy-en-Josas in 1982, forms a 19.50-metre tower composed of automobiles stacked on top of one another and cast in concrete. In Martigny, Contrepoint pour violoncelles is installed in the sculpture park of the Fondation Pierre Gianadda; the source indicates a purchase in 2003.
In 2000, Arman presented the thematic retrospective «La Traversée des objets» at the Château de Villeneuve in Vence. In 2002–2003, he returned to easel painting with the Serious Paintings series, in which the recomposition of musical instruments is combined with their pictorial staging.
This profile brings together identity references for Arman and paintings, drawings and works on paper documented in auction catalogues.
9 references are documented at Genève Enchères, Piguet, Germann. Each record links to its source; the amounts are not a general valuation of the artist’s work.
Acrylic
Aqua frago
acrylique
Catalogue period : 2026-09-23
Published result : 4000 CHF
Fees not specified in the available data
Estimate : CHF 2000–3000
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Indian ink on paper
Calligraphie de violon
encre de chine sur papier
Catalogue period : 2025-12-10
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
Estimate : CHF 2000–3000
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Oil on panel
Composition bleu
huile sur panneau
Catalogue period : 2024-11-28 — 2024-12-11
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
Estimate : CHF 2000–3000
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Oil on panel
Composition jaune, rouge et noire
huile sur panneau
Catalogue period : 2024-11-28 — 2024-12-11
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
Estimate : CHF 3000–5000
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Tusche auf Pergament.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Mixed media on paper
Sans titre, 1963
Mischtechnik auf Papier.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Oil on paper
Sans titre, 1963
Öl auf Papier.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Assemblage. Öl auf Leinwand und Einzelteile einer Violine.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Acrylic
Sans titre
acrylique
Catalogue period : 2023-12-06
Published result : 22000 CHF
Fees not specified in the available data
Estimate : CHF 15000–25000
View the lot at the auction house ↗SwissArtGallery documentary note based on the cited sources. Titles, media and qualifications are provided in the profile language; the original catalogue wording remains available in each record.
Documentation updated : 2026-10-19
