Description

Artist: Ramon Dilley (b.1932 Spanish/French)

The harbour in St. Tropez

February 11, 1932 saw the birth in Madrid of Gomez Ramon y Romero, a descendant of Pizarro and Trujillo, the Spanish conquistadors who took over Peru.

When the civil war broke out in 1936, Romero's family fled to France and settled in Royan. This seaside resort was currently in fashion and frequented by Paris' who's who. It was a location often visited by painters such as Lucas, Diaz and Pablo Picasso. Due to his "Belle Epoque" background, Gomez Ramon y Romero was later baptised as "Dilley" in the sixties by Maurice Rheims.

The Académie Française was where he found his vocation and it was to remain the inspirational source of his works. Under the patronage of sculptor Paul Belmondo, Dilley gained entry to the Ecole du Louvre and was commissioned his first works, which allowed him more time to devote to personal research.

Over the years he befriended François Mauriac, author and member of the Académie Française, and also enjoyed close contact with Jean Giono, famous author, and Marcel Achard of the French Academy. In 1968 he became acquainted with Catherine Deneuve who introduced him to Claude Chabrol, cinema creator, and now a major collector of his works. Celebrities owning paintings by Dilley include Michèle Morgan, Charles Aznavour, Guy Laroche, His Royal Highness of Iran, His Majesty of Monaco Principality, and Mr Valery Giscard d'Estaing ex-President of the French Republic.

In 1988, he was awarded first prize for the best poster of the year by the minister for culture Jack Lang.