Michel Tenthorey
Born in Saint-Saphorin, Vaud, Suisse in 1948.
Swiss · Vaud figurative watercolour ¬∑ Lavaux, Lake Geneva, villages and landscapes
Michel Tenthorey is a Swiss watercolourist whose work is closely associated with the wine-growing landscapes of Lake Geneva. Self-taught, he made his first watercolours at the age of fourteen while completing a commercial apprenticeship from 1963 to 1966. After working as an accountant and in insurance, he left that career in 1976–1977 to devote himself entirely to painting.
Watercolour and pastel became his preferred media. The terraced vineyards, villages, vineyard huts, paths, Lake Geneva shores and snow-covered landscapes of the Lavaux form the core of his imagery. In 1981 he received the Grand Prix du Jury at Galerie ARFI in Denges, a distinction that accompanied the expansion of his exhibition career.
In 1999 he published « Regard sur Lavaux », containing around sixty reproductions of his paintings. In 2007 he designed the label for a Dézaley grand cru promoted by the Office des vins vaudois in connection with Lavaux’s inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In 2023 the Association ProLavaux awarded him an honorary prize for his extensive body of work devoted to the region. Local press reported at the time that he had produced more than 5,000 paintings and taken part in around 160 solo or group exhibitions. This abundant production has helped shape a highly recognisable painted image of the Lavaux.
His Swiss secondary market remains active: at Dogny, « Route enneigée » sold for CHF 406 and « Village sous la neige » for CHF 480 in 2018, while « Lavaux sous la neige » realised CHF 686 in 2022.
The works by Michel Tenthorey presented by Swiss Art Gallery extend this artistic journey and take their place naturally within this corpus.
