Born in 1929 in Luxembourg City, Alexis Wagner spent most of his childhood and adolescence in Liège, where his father was a university professor. Initially returning to the Grand-Duchy without his parents after the Second World War, Wagner pursued studies at the Athénée de Luxembourg and the Lycée des Arts et Métiers under sculptor Lucien Wercollier, from 1946 on. He attended the Académie Julian in Paris in 1949, initially intending to study under Fernand Léger (1881-1955) (a plan he abandoned, as biographical notes suggest), eventually studying under Edouard Pignon (1905-1993), followed by several study trips to France. Before settling down in Luxembourg with his wife Irma Wagner-Laschette, the couple travelled, following Wagner’s artistic pursuit: In 1955, he studied mural and monumental painting under Paul Delvaux (1897-1994) at the Ecole de l’Abbaye de la Cambre (Brussels), then undertook a study excursion to Paris and an extended journey around Italy to research Renaissance painting. From 1960 on, Wagner studied the violin at the Luxembourg Conservatoire. He passed away after a long illness in 1987, on the day of his 58th birthday.
Wagner's work revolves around depictions of women, particularly nude paintings and drawings, as well as portraits and mother-child scenes. Fewer works include landscapes and depictions of children and men. His best-known paintings feature a notably intense colour palette and clear lines, while his private archive consists largely of studies of human anatomy and body movement in drawing and writing. Discovering the works of Henri Matisse (1869-1954) strongly impacted Wagner’s style (Raus 10), who had already noted in 1946: “… I want pure drawing, I want the line to do it all, and not the shadow.” (08.12.1946, translation by author).
19-year-old Wagner’s debut in the Salon de Printemps 1948 du Cercle artistique de Luxembourg (CAL) was positively acknowledged by the local press, with Pol Robert Schneider considering him “the discovery of the year” (9, translated by author). Besides seven participations in CAL Salons between 1948 and 1956, Wagner was among the artists representing Luxembourg in the travelling exhibition Hedendaagse Luxemburgse Kunst 1950-1951 in Belgium and the Netherlands. Participations in group exhibitions until 1961 were generally met with encouraging criticism (Muller 1952: 3, Walentiny 7), and occasional demand for more progress (Muller 1950: 5, Muller 1956: 3). Two successful monographic exhibitions at Galerie Horn in 1958 and 1960 were followed by a third one at Galerie Dols in Liège in 1965. Wagner perceived this latter one as a failure, keeping a very critical press review: “ugly, as if dirty, the drawing without grace, without finesse, hackneyed themes, the colours aggressive and without distinction” (Parisse 2). This experience marked a turning point in Wagner’s artistic production and life, causing a 14-year exhibition hiatus (Molling 78). During this phase the artist concentrated further on the study of mythology and modified his style, creating series of paintings called the Idylles, which he first presented at Galerie St Michel in 1979. In 1982, Wagner took part in an exhibition at the Villa Vauban, his only museum exhibition. In the years following his death, several monographic exhibitions in Luxembourg would pay homage to the late artist, concentrating on his oeuvre between 1947-1964.
Besides aforementioned artistic influences, Wagner’s education and early career was strongly supported by CAL members and important Luxembourgish artists and critics, such as Auguste Trémont, whom he met in Paris, Michel Stoffel, Lucien Wercollier, Pol Schneider, Joseph-Emile Muller.
Wagner also nursed a passion for music, proclaiming that the artists who most influenced his painting were first the composer “Beethoven, then probably Botticelli (1445-1510), then El Greco (1541-1614), etc…”(17.12.1946).
The Luxembourg Ministry of Arts and Sciences granted the young artist a financial "encouragement scholarship" in both 1951 and 1960.
The MNAHA acquired works by Wagner in 1960 and in 2022. According to his private sales records, he is represented in private and corporate collections in Luxembourg and abroad.
Not having been commercially successful, Wagner left a rich intellectual heritage in form of an extensive estate. This not only includes drawings and writings, based on art historical, medical and biology literature, poems, musical compositions, and literary notes, but also artistic and philosophical reflections, which inspired and accompanied his artistic evolution from adolescence on. Literature on the artist is, however, largely limited to the encouraging press criticism of his early career and extensive discussion of his work and life in several obituaries published after his untimely death.
Works Cited
Molling, René. "Portrait de l'artiste Alexis Wagner (1929-1987)." Nos Cahiers. Lëtzebuerger Zäitschrëft Fir Kultur 2 (1988): 73-84. Print.
Muller, J.-E. “Der Salon des ‘Cercle Artistique‘ im Museum Luxembourg.“ Tageblatt 23.09.1950: 5. Print.
Muller, J.-E. “Der Salon des ‘Cercle Artistique’.“ Tageblatt 02.10.1952: 3. Print.
Muller, J.-E. “Der Salon des ‘Cercle Artistique‘ im Staatsmuseum.“ Tageblatt 03.10.1956: 3. Print.
Parisse, Jacques. “Galerie Jean Dols : Wagner.“ La Wallonie 15.10.1965: 2. Print.
Original: “… laide, comme sale, le dessin sans grâce, sans finesse, des thèmes éculés, les couleurs agressives et sans distinction.“
Raus, Jean-Paul. „Aspets de la plus jeune Peinture au Luxembourg.“ D'Letzebuerger Land 19.09.1958: 10. Print.
Schneider, Pol. Robert. "Der ‘Cercle Artistique’ de Luxembourg stellt aus: SALON 1949." Ons Jongen 18 (1949): 9. Print.
Wagner, Alexis. Letter to his parents, 8 Dec. 1946. Manuscript. (Collection LKA, P-WAGA01-202301-03.3).
Original: "… je veux le dessin pur, je cherche que la ligne fasse tout et non l’ombre.“
Wagner, Alexis. Letter to his parents, 17 Dec. 1946. Manuscript. (Collection LKA, P-WAGA01-202301-03.3).
Original: "Si quel-qu’un me demandait quant à la peinture à quels maîtres je me réfère, je répondrais: Beethoven, puis sans doute Boticelli, Greco etc.“
Walentiny, Jos. "La peinture luxembourgeoise en 1952." Die Warte/Luxemburger Wort 29.10.1952: 7. Print.
Please cite this article as follows:
Julia Wack."Alexis Wagner."
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Last updated
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