Profession: artist

Kandinsky invited Delaunay to join the Blaue Reiter group in Munich: he strongly influenced Klee and Macke, and another younger friend, Hofmann. Metzinger participated with Delaunay in the first Cubist exhibition. Sonia (formerly Terk) was his wife and artistic companion. Apollinaire coined a term for his friend’s art and briefly lived with the Delaunays; Gris used to go out on the town with them, and Laurencin joined them in exile in Barcelona. Delaunay was a friend to both Tzara and Soupault, painting their portraits, and was among the first to befriend Arp, Ernst and Chagall on their arrival in Paris.

A shooting-star in the French art-world, Bonington died of tuberculosis at 25; his handling of light and form anticipated the Impressionists. His father illegally exported lace-making machinery to Calais, and based his family there. Moving on to Paris, where he studied under Gros, Bonington met Delacroix, who was making studies in the Louvre, and who described Bonington as a tall adolescent in a short coat. The two visited London, where they sketched armour, then shared a studio in Paris. Géricault became, through Delacroix, another close friend.

Miró, Arp and Breton were met when Magritte moved to France; Duchamp, Ernst, Aragon, Éluard, Ray and Dalí were other Paris artist friends, frequently met at Breton’s. Breton bought several of his paintings, but omitted him from his book on Surrealism and Painting. Magritte (who continued to admire Breton) commented that it was hard to be in tune with a man who didn’t like music; relations with Breton suffered later through their different interpretations of surrealism. The Magrittes and Éluards went to stay with Dalí in Spain, Gala Éluard staying on with Dalí (they later married). Magritte met Moore in London.

A significant sculptor who died prematurely. Duchamp and Villon were his brothers, and fellow-organisers of the Puteaux group, a Sunday discussion group for artists including the painters Picabia, Gris, Léger, Delaunay, Gleizes, Metzinger and Kupka, and the sculptor Archipenko. Boccioni was a personal friend and almost certainly an influence on his sculptural work. Villon shared the same house; Kupka lived next door.

Braque and Dubuffet were also from Le Havre, Braque a fellow-student. Dufy painted together with Braque in Normandy and Provence, and with Marquet, another early friend, in Normandy. Poiret, a firm friend who liked the company of artists, funded the impecunious Dufy to experiment with fabric printing techniques, and went with him to Morocco. Apollinaire and Dufy worked daily on Apollinaire’s ‘Bestiaire’ after Picasso dropped out of illustrating it. Dufy designed sets and costumes for Cocteau, mixed with Gris, Picasso and others from the Bateau Lavoir, and met Lawrence while travelling in Italy.

Chardin was one of the artist friends La Tour made portraits of. The philosophes Rousseau, d’Alembert and Voltaire were among his best friends; Diderot considered asking him to contribute to his and d’Alembert’s Encyclopédie.

The nine-year-old Renoir was offered free vocal lessons by Gounod. Working in the open air, he met Courbet (an important influence) and Corot in the same year. He also met Monet and Sisley as a student, and Pissarro and Cézanne while still a young man. Both Mallarmé and Monet became lifelong friends, Monet and he painting and exhibiting together. Morisot, Cézanne, Pissarro, Sisley, Degas, Monet and he formed a company and organised their first exhibition in Nadar’s photographic studio. Valadon was one of his models before becoming an artist herself. He painted Wagner’s portrait in 35 minutes.