Laurence Dumaine-Calle, Jean Marc Bustamante with the two laureates, Stefan Sulzer and Francesc Ruiz

Two years after he disappeared on April 6, 2015, Bob Calle, a brilliant oncologist who directed Institut Curie in Paris, was celebrated at Ecole des Beaux Arts by a group of friends assembled by his widow Laurence Dumaine-Calle. The occasion was the prize giving ceremony in his name to European artists’ books. For he was a great art lover and had founded the Carré d’Art in Nïmes with Jean Cacharel. 

In Ecole des Beaux Arts, the majestuous decor was perfect for the Prize giving ceremony

The prize went to two artists, Francesc Ruiz a Spaniard for “Fahrenheit 451’s comic” and Stefan Sulzer, a Swiss for “The day my mother touched Robert Ryman“. Jean Marc Bustamante who runs Ecole des Beaux arts was present as were many artists close to Bob Calle such as Christian Boltanski and Annette Messager, two of his best friends whose catalogue raisonné he had worked on, Jean-Michel Othoniel and Johan Creten, Jean-Michel Alberola, Julian Schnabel, etc…

Vera Michalski, the publisher, who is also a great art lover,  sponsored the prize and Frédéric Mitterrand, former minister of culture,  was there as an old friend of Laurence Calle.  Catherine Lamour and Jean (Cacharel) Bousquet were also present as were collectors Jean Philippe and Françoise Billarant. Laurence thanked Gilles Fuchs, a great promoter of French artists and a collector himself,  who could not be there but had been essential in the creation of the prize and all of Bob’s faithful friends who helped organise this first edition.

Christian Boltanski, Vera Michalski and Catherine Lamour