Lucien Fontanarosa

Biographical information

RolesCompeted in Olympic Games
SexMale
Full nameLucien Joseph•Fontanarosa
Used nameLucien•Fontanarosa
Born19 December 1912 in Paris XIe, Paris (FRA)
Died27 April 1975 in Créteil, Val-de-Marne (FRA)
NOC France

Biography

Lucien Fontanarosa was of Italian descent, but his parents had emigrated to Paris for employment reasons, where his father found work as a tailor. Lucien grew up mainly in Paris and Padua, in his native country. Although he had already started painting at 13-years-old, he first had to complete a business degree until he was allowed to study painting in Paris by his parents. He completed his painting studies while living in Paris, but also Morocco, Italy and Spain. Eventually, he settled in Paris. Fontanarosa received numerous awards, including the 1937 Prix de Rome. His later wife Annette Faive, who would develop a chronology of his work and his own website, was also a painter. Lucien was very versatile, painting frescos, landscapes, still lifes, and working with many different materials. In 1954 he became a member of the jury for the Prix de Rome in the paintings category and taught at the American Academy in Fontainebleau. In 1953 he became a Knight of the Legion of Honor.

Fontanarosa’s painting Cavalier is shown in the catalog and was awarded Honorable Mention at the 1948 London Olympic Art Competitions. Its style is reminiscent of the fresco The Flying Dragon, which he created a few years later for a vocational school, one of his numerous public contracts.

Results

Games Discipline (Sport) / Event NOC / Team Pos Medal As
1948 Summer Olympics Art Competitions FRA Lucien Fontanarosa
Painting, Paintings, Open (Olympic) HM