Jean Dufy (March 12, 1888 – May 12, 1964) was a French painter of Parisian society, country scenes, circuses, horse races, theatrical productions, and orchestras.

In 1906 he visited an exhibition put on by the Cercle de l’Art Moderne in Le Havre and was particularly inspired by a painting by Henri Matisse, Fenêtre ouverte à Collioure.

[1] After completing his military service (1910-1912), Dufy moved to Paris, where he became acquainted with artists André Derain, Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso and the poet Guillaume Apollinaire.

He was an ambulance driver with 24e Régiment d’Infanterie and took part in the Battle of Charleroi on 21 August 1914, before becoming a cyclist in the artillery.

[2] In 1920, after spending some time in the Vosges to recover from an illness, Dufy returned to Paris and settled in the artists' quarter of Montmartre, next door to Braque.

[5] In 1922, Dufy had married Ismérie Louise Coutut, who came from Preuilly-sur-Claise in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France.