Dictionary of Makers

Born in Mirecourt, Victor François Fétique was apprenticed to Charles Claude Husson and trained further with Sigisbert Maline, Émile Miquel, and Nicolas Bazin. His early bows bear the hallmarks of this schooling, with narrow heads and heels mounted with miter joints. In 1901 Fétique moved to Paris to join the firm of Caressa & Français. The 12 years he spent there were formative in the evolution of his model, which gained some characteristics of his colleague Claude Thomassin's work. He set up his own firm in 1913, and after modest beginnings he began to produce a large number of bows, especially from 1915 to 1933. 

 

From 1921 to 1926 Fétique relied on assistance from workshop makers, including Albert Thomassin and Louis Morizot 'père', who started bows in Mirecourt and shipped them to Fétique for finishing in Paris. On the whole his model features a relatively small and regular head, round frogs with Peccatte-like throats, and one-piece buttons with two pins. Fétique bows can be separate into two distinct classes: those made by Fétique himself, his brother, son, or nephew André Richaume, which are among the finest French bows from the early 20th Century, and lesser workshop bows. His most common brand, "Vtor Fetique à Paris," can be found on both.