Alfred Mannesier became famous as one of the most important representatives of French lyrical abstraction.
The trained architect attained abstraction in 1943 after a deep examination of Henri Matisse and Fernand Léger, as well as after periods coined by the occupation of cubist and surrealist painting. He employed abstraction for the first time at full effect in his famous painting "The Pilgrims of Emmaus" (1944). The picture's title alone shows a basic trait of the art of Alfred Manessier, which sought to express religious sensation in the interplay of forms and colors. In doing so he used strong contrasts in restrained colors with a preference for a dull red and a powerful blue as well as often mosaic-like structures. Besides paintings and graphic art, Alfred Manessier created world-famous abstract church windows, for instance for St. Gereon in Cologne or the crypt of the Essen Minster.
Works by Alfred Manessier can be found in renowned international collections like the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo or the Tate Gallery in London.