Constantin ANDREOU (São Paulo, 1917- Athens, 2007) Ring in welded and gilded metal or bronze, with entangled motif, unsigned Upper motif approx. 2.7 x 2.2 cm Born in São Paulo in 1917, Constantin Andreou spent his early years in Brazil, before moving to Athens with his family at the age of 8. It was in 1942, with Portrait de mon frère (1935), a marble head exhibited at the Salon Panhellénique in Athens, that he achieved notoriety and won a grant from the French government. After arriving in Paris in 1945, where he had previously worked exclusively in stone and marble, Andréou developed his experience as a metallurgist, perfecting a welded brass technique. The ensemble of works - sculptures, paintings, drawings, lithographs, jewelry - presented today is the testimony of nearly 40 years of friendship between the artist and his collectors. Andréou had the opportunity to create several rings, necklaces and belt buckles for the woman he called his "sister", who used to dress for Parisian couturiers, in particular Yves Saint-Laurent.