| At the time of the declaration of war, some municipalities had to abandon many works in progress, for which they had signed execution contracts. Since the armistice, the former unemployment police station, which has become the reclassification office, has taken on this work on its own.
In Ivry, certain artistic developments had been planned. These include the decoration of the kindergarten, the erection of a monumental fountain in the square and the ornamentation of the municipal village hall.
The police station, in agreement with Mr. Jacquelin, mayor of Ivry, and the municipality, therefore decided to have sculptures and paintings executed collectively, one can even say collectively, by teams of artists, under the direction of a master of 'artwork. It was, in short, to resume the tradition of the Middle Ages to which we owe our magnificent cathedrals and so many imperishable works.
Only, in the twentieth century, artists have the right to no longer remain anonymous and, after selection by competition, the sculptor Firmin Michelet was responsible for the decoration of the kindergarten and the construction of the fountain, while that Mr. Pierre Girieud was chosen as prime contractor for the beautification of the village hall. His team was composed of: Miss d'Andréis et Simonnot, de Messrs. Boulainghier, Chenu-Tournier, Chesneau, Dewé, Maxime Girieud, Kresser-Desportes, Lanos, Pocy, R.-C. Poupart and Prior.
The team began work in July 42, and the work was completed in November.
The room is today decorated with several panels intended to glorify the family, sports, arts and sciences, but also to extol the joys that the river and gardening bring. They will remain as original testimonies of the value of community work. This painting is linked to the past only to better jump into the future and this emerging community, under the auspices of art, was worth highlighting.
- reproduction of the frescoes - |