Raymond Moretti (1931–2005), Women’s Heads from the *Profils* series, 1970s

Color lithograph on vellum paper, 47 x 61 cm inside a 60 x 72 cm passe-partout, limited edition, unnumbered; artist’s signature in ink on the lower right; handwritten dedication in ink.
Publisher: Georges & Armand Israel Editeur.
Georges Israël worked in Paris as a publisher of exclusive, richly illustrated bibliophile editions. In 1977, he began a close collaboration with Raymond Moretti. This collaboration lasted over 10 years and resulted in numerous luxury publications and exhibitions of the artist’s work around the world. He was Moretti’s patron and friend. After the artist’s death, part of the collection of over 200 works by Moretti that had previously belonged to Israël was donated to the Louis Nucéra Library in Nice.
Raymond Moretti—an artist of dynamism and printmaking with extraordinary creative energy, whose influence spanned from monumental urban sculptures to intimate prints on paper. His technique and style are synonymous with French graphic modernism of the second half of the 20th century. Moretti saw lithography and silkscreen printing as the ideal tools for quickly and precisely expressing his visions.
Unlike artists who focused on blocks of color, Moretti relied on calligraphic precision. His lines are not merely outlines, but vehicles for emotion and speed. The human profile is a recurring motif, often stylized to the point of being barely recognizable, depicting states such as a scream, delight, or melancholy. Moretti created many lithographs in a similar style, focusing on dynamic, overlapping profiles. These were often published as part of a series or remained without an individual, publicly known title, known instead by a general heading, such as *Profils* (Profiles) or *Les Cris* (Screams).
Moretti was an artist who successfully combined commercial art (he was a highly regarded press illustrator) with fine art. He designed about thirty postage stamps for the French postal service and created the logo for the Central Directorate of the French Judicial Police (combining a human head with a tiger’s head). He was a great lover of music, especially jazz. He painted portraits of many famous musicians, such as Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, and Thelonious Monk. In the 1960s, he illustrated a series of 12 sought-after jazz LPs titled *Moretti Verve*.
His lithographs are sought after in the art market for their extraordinary visual energy, technical mastery, and distinctive, unique style. He was noticed by Jean Cocteau, with whom he collaborated (e.g., on gouaches and one oil painting on the theme of “The Age of Aquarius”), and was appreciated and admired by Pablo Picasso.
The frames shown in the images are for illustrative purposes only and do not constitute a commercial offer.