Michele Forgeois Biography

Michele Forgeois

French

1929-2000

Biography

Despite evidence of a prolific artistic career, information on the life of printmaker, sculptor, and textile artist Michele Forgeois is limited. She was born in Bois-Colombe, France, on May 16, 1929. She studied printmaking and sculpture, and worked as an illustrator for Allen Press in Kentfield, California, at various times in the 1970s and '80s. She was noted for her monumental sculptural works commissioned by a variety of governmental and corporate entities, including Louise Michele College, the Banque de France and the Perigueux commune. Among her smaller sculptural designs was a trophy in bronze for the 1983 Press and Media of Paris award.

In 1984 Forgeois was commissioned by the French government to create a memorial for Berthe "Berty" Albrecht, a celebrated World War II resistance fighter and feminist who died in a French prison cell operated by the Gestapo during the occupation; the monument was installed on a median along the street also named for Albrecht, intersecting at Battaillon-du-Pacifique square. On September 28, 1984, Forgeois was promoted chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. In 1983 filmmaker Fabienne Strouve made a fifteen minute film about Forgeois, including interviews with the artist about her work. 

Michele Forgeois died on June 14, 2000, at her studio in Paris.