Isabelle Bittencourt, the French Nationality, is a name that has become synonymous with quality and glamour. Born in France, Bittencourt’s career spanned many countries of Europe. She worked for France during the age of Empire, lived in England during the Industrial Age, and during World War II formed an international network of resistance fighters in her native France. Following the Resistance, she settled in the West Indies and there she began a successful painting career that would see her produce some of the most celebrated works of art ever made by any woman. It was this career that would see Bittencourt take on a much wider role in both painting and design as well, and she also developed a love of jewelry making as a result.
Isabelle Bittencourt first worked as a draftsman and designer for prominent jewellery and clock makers in London before she decided to try her hand at a career as a painter. At the age of thirty-one, Bittencourt began to work as a commercial artist for the emerging French National Gallery where she honed her skills as an illustrator before moving to painting full time. It was whilst working as a commercial artist for Jules Favre that Bittencourt met her true partner, Frenchman Raymond Arugues. The two fell in love and married in 1947, only months before Arugues’ untimely death. Following his death, Bittencourt took on her son, Pierre, with whom she had a daughter named Corin.
When Corin grew up, Bittencourt decided to teach herself interior design, but before she could start her career as a teacher, she discovered she had a natural talent for art and set about teaching herself how to sketch. After becoming a successful interior designer, Bittencourt travelled around the world, visiting and living in several countries including England, Spain, the United States, Norway and Germany. She returned to France in the 70s to live and work in Paris. As a result of this globetrotting lifestyle, Bittencourt has created work which graced many prestigious exhibitions, including the London Fog Gallery, the Saachi gallery in Tokyo and the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.