Maurice Pillard Verneuil Biography

Maurice Pillard Verneuil (1869-1942), born Maurice Pillard (adopted the surname Verneuil in 1888), was an artist and designer born in Saint-Quentin, France. He trained at L'École Guérin under Eugène Grasset, a prominent figure in the Art Nouveau movement. Taking Art Nouveau and Japonisme (the influence of Japanese aesthetics in Western Europe in the late 19th century) as influences, Verneuil integrated natural motifs in the range of mediums he worked in, from decorative arts to illustration and poster design. Verneuil published a series of books featuring his visually dense and whimsical designs on his own, such as L'animal dans la décoration, and with others, such as in Grasset's La plante et ses applications ornementales. 

His designs covered both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods, subsequently transitioning into his much-acclaimed geometric patterns. Verneuil also produced numerous poster works in France alongside the well-known artists such as Toulouse-Lautrec and Chéret. Other collaborators included Armand Point, René Juste, Alfons Mucha and Mathurin Méheut.

After the First World War, he moved to Geneva, and then, from 1921 to his death, to Rivaz, where he lived with his third wife, Adélaïde Verneuil de Marval, who was also a painter and the photomodel he used for his portfolio, "Images d'une femme", in the 1930s.

In 1925, Verneuil and his wife Adélaïde worked together on the portfolio Kaleidoscope: Ornements abstraits, quatre-vingt-sept motifs en vingt planches. Composés par Ad.(élaïde) and M.P. Verneuil. Some sources state that 'Ad' was Adam Verneuil, but this is incorrect; his collaborator was his wife Adelaide.

He trained many artists, including Amédée Ozenfant. In 1923, he embarked with his wife Adélaïde on a long voyage to the Far East, including visits to Cambodia, Indonesia, and Japan.

He died in 1942.