Vierny, Dina; Hokenson, Jan (Translator)

About the Author

Dina Vierny, a renowned French art historian and gallerist, was born in 1919 in Chișinău, Moldova, and became a pivotal figure in the Parisian art scene after moving to France in the 1930s. As a teenager, she served as muse to sculptor Aristide Maillol, later curating exhibitions that championed modern masters like Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso. Vierny founded her own gallery in 1946, fostering emerging talents and preserving the legacy of 20th-century art. Her scholarly work, including the biography Francoise Gilot: The Early Years: 1940-55, co-authored and translated into English by Jan Hokenson, offers an intimate portrait of the painter's formative period amid wartime Paris, blending personal anecdotes with cultural history. Vierny's contributions extended to public art installations and philanthropy until her death in 2009, leaving an indelible mark on European modernism.