Andre Masson (French, 1896-1987) colorful lithograph in red, yellow and blue titled "Le Soleil" (The Sun), 1938, signed in-the-plate lower left. Andre-Aime-Rene Masson was born in Balagny-sur-Therain, Oise, but was brought up in Belgium. He began his study of art at the age of eleven in Brussels, at the Academie Royale des Beaux-Arts under the guidance of Constant Montald, and later he studied in Paris. He fought for France during World War I and was seriously injured. His early works display an interest in cubism. He later became associated with surrealism, and he was one of the most enthusiastic employers of automatic drawing, making a number of automatic works in pen and ink. In 1954 Masson received the Grand Prix National des Arts. His work also became increasingly abstract in 1958, the same year the Venice Biennale dedicated an entire room to his work. Masson regularly produced designs for the stage, beginning with his designs for Leonide Massine's ballet Les presages (Destinies) in 1933, through the mid-1960s. His most significant and ambitious postwar commission took place in 1965 when the novelist and Minister of Cultural Affairs Andre Malraux invited him to paint the ceiling of the Theatre de l'Odeon in Paris. [https://www.guggenheim.org/artwork/artist/andre-masson]. Provenance: Phyllis Lucas Gallery, NYC. [Art: 14" H x 10 1/4" W; Mat: 19 1/2" H x 16" W].