Born in Marseille, France in 1896, Joseph Inguimberty was admitted to the Ecole Nationale Supèrieure des Arts Decoratifs in Paris in 1913 where he received a strong foundation in both Classical as well as Modern styles of painting. Like many others in his generation, Inguimberty’s education was disrupted by the First World War, in which he conscripted and was subsequently wounded.

Unsurprisingly, these events came to shape Inguimberty’s world view as he embarked on a period of travel and exploration following the events of the war, perhaps in an idealistic search for the varying expressions of beauty, and how best to capture them through his art. In 1924, a travel bursary enabled Inguimberty to visit Italy, Greece, a...