1953 - 2025
1953
– THE NEWSPAPER LE GOÉLAND PUBLISHED IN ITS COLUMNS OF THE SUMMER ISSUE 1953, A STELE FOR A VISIONARY:
We have just lost one of our dearest friends, Louis Cattiaux, on July 16.
This loss is all the more poignant for us as he represented, in our threatened era, a spiritual guide charged with the highest missions, far removed from impure dealings and the lamentable enterprises of vulgarization that today afflict Sacred Science. He remained in line with the primordial Tradition, and his work, like his life, stands as a testimony rendered to the Light.
It is true that if we no longer have the consolation of his presence, if we no longer see him with our clay eyes, he is assured in our hearts of survival, for he belongs to the great mystical body of Him who said to his disciples, before vanishing into the clouds: «I will be with you until the end of the world».
[…] […] Louis Cattiaux had not yet crossed the threshold of fifty when he left – to borrow an expression from Aurore Sand – to join the universe. He was born under the sign of Leo, and his planet was the Sun. I realized this from our first contact (about six years ago) in the conjunction of our astral affinities; in that wonderful workshop on Casimir Périer Street, where the most humble object bore a virtue from beyond, I was to learn much from this great lord, who, through his painted or written works, showed an alchemist’s patience in rediscovering the arcana of the world.
A day will undoubtedly come when «enlightened» enthusiasts will benefit, for their joy and deliverance, from the secrets that Cattiaux entrusted to his precious canvases, imbued with a scent of angelism, most of which have the substance and brilliance of Byzantine enamels.
It is not yet our place to reveal all the powers that this Sage possessed, who also practiced occult medicine.
A part of his spiritual treasure is included in The Message Rediscovered, the only work he published during his lifetime. Like the Great Work of the disciples of Trismegistus, it represents long years of laboratory work before culminating in Chrysopoeia, and we point it out to those of our friends who are interested in such matters (At the author’s, 3, Casimir Périer Street)..
Allegories and coats of arms, – as written in the preface of the book by Lanza del Vasto, who was one of Louis Cattiaux’s best friends along with René Guénon:
«…do not explain the mechanical linking up of appearances, but rather the analogies of powers and virtues, the corresponding of numbers with sounds, of figures with laws, of the germination of gold in the mines with that of truth in the heart of man. In their obscure texts, where the recipes of Great Art are interspersed with pious warnings, the solemn sentences with cries of wonder and prayers, gleam the threads that weave the mantle of the king of kings.»
And now, before we fall silent, we have no choice, in the presence of this exceptional being, mysteriously appeared on the shore of shadows, but to recall the words of the Apocalypse, which are read at the Office of the Dead and which Saint John heard fall from heaven, like a stone of lightning:
«Let him now rest from his labors, for his deeds follow him!»
Blessed be the masters – wrote Louis Cattiaux – who lead us to the secret root of fire. Their memory will be perpetuated in grateful hearts.
And this too:
The light of heaven bursts forth from the great silence of death. (Cf. article by Jean-Marie de Saint-Ideuc, «Stele for Two Visionaries» in Le Goéland, no. 108, April-May-June 1953).
– TRIBUTE FROM THE SWISS WRITER, POET, AND PUBLISHER JEAN CUTTAT TO LOUIS CATTIAUX, PARIS, JULY 23, 1953:
The death of Louis Cattiaux has shaken me. In its brutality, this news struck all his friends right in the heart. This ardent, warm life, which broke the frame of contrary destinies, this living example of greatness and faith that so often brought me back from the path of inner capitulation, this man visibly visited, manifestly inhabited, this radiant messenger from beyond, whom we all loved so much has completed his task.
Most beings who cross the expanse of our lives, their disappearance is but a quickly forgotten wake. Cattiaux was not just a skiff cast upon life; he was a deep and obstinate plowman.
Behind him now are lush gardens commensurate with his genius.
That is why this man is not dead. Many will live from him for a long time yet. And if his furrow is finished, his work is just beginning.
I had a deep friendship for Cattiaux. His trust in life had comforted me many times. His rare visits were a celebration. His mere presence helped to live. How can I pay him a more beautiful tribute? The loss you have just felt, I feel it too with sorrow and assure you, dear Madam, of my most fervent thoughts and prayers.
– Jean Cuttat had indeed prophesied when he wrote: «…And if his furrow is finished, his work is just beginning…». His swift departure at the age of 49 made Louis Cattiaux a posthumous celebrity regarding his masterwork The Message Rediscovered, due to the numerous editions in French and other translations that would subsequently appear.
Indeed, the life he carried within him continued in his work :
« AND IF HIS FURROW IS FINISHED, HIS WORK HAS JUST BEGUN » :
Widowed at 49, his wife Henriette continued to live at 3 Casimir Périer Street in Paris until 1996, surrounded by her husband’s works and kindly welcoming the many visitors interested in the pictorial and literary works of her late husband. She passed away in Pennes Mirabeau (Bouches-du-Rhône) on January 31, 2000.
1954
– This year sees the publication of the edition of Poèmes Alchimiques, Tristes, Zen, d’Avant, de la Résonance, de la Connaissance, Ed. Le Cercle du Livre, Paris.
1956
– The first complete edition of the 40 chapters of Le Message Retrouvé is published by Denoël in Paris, thanks to the good care of the d’Hooghvorst family.
1963
– The first complete edition of the 40 chapters of Le Message Retrouvé is published by Denoël in Paris, thanks to the good care of the d’Hooghvorst family.
1978
– The second complete edition of Le Message Retrouvé is published by Ed. Rossel in Brussels
– The first Spanish translation of the Message Retrouvé is published under the title El Mensaje de nuevo encontrado, Ed. Rondas, Barcelona.
1980
– Emmanuel d’Hooghvorst initiates the publication of the letters of Louis Cattiaux to his friends in the Belgian magazine «Le Fil d’Ariane», under the title Florilège cattésien. These periodic publications continue until 1994. Meanwhile, in the sister Spanish magazine «La Puerta», the same excerpts are published from 1982 to 1998.
1987
– The «Cattiaux» exhibition takes place, organized by Frédéric Dupont, Deputy Mayor of the 7th arrondissement, former Minister and Deputy Mayor of Paris, at the Town Hall of the 7th from April 22 to May 8.
1988
– The first Catalan translation El Missatge Retrobat is published by Obelisco, Barcelona.
1991
– The second complete edition of the Message Retrouvé is published by Les Amis de Louis Cattiaux, Brussels.
– The first edition of L. Cattiaux’s essay on painting titled Physique et métaphysique de la peinture is published by Les Amis de Louis Cattiaux, Brussels.
– The second Spanish edition El Mensaje Reencontrado is published by Ed. Sirio, Málaga.
1998
– The first Spanish translation of the essay on painting Física y Metafísica de la Pintura is published, along with his poetic work Poemas de Antes, de la Resonancia, Zen, del Conocimiento, Tristes, Alquímicos, Ed. Arola, Tarragona.
1999
– The entire collection of periodic publications of Louis Cattiaux’s correspondence to his friends, published in Spanish in the magazine «La Puerta» (from 1982 to 1998), is gathered in the Spanish edition Florilegio Epistolar, Ed. Arola, Tarragona.
2000
– The Italian translation of Il Messaggio Ritrovato is published, Ed. Méditerranée, Rome.
– The bilingual French/Spanish edition of Message Retrouvé/El Mensaje Reencontrado is published by Ed. Arola, Tarragona.
2003
– The second French edition of the Poems is published by Ed. La Table d’Émeraude M.C.O.R., Paris.
– An exhibition of his pictorial work is held on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of his death at the Château de Pallandt (Bousval-Belgium) on September 25, 26, and 27.
2005
– The first edition of the «Œuvres complètes de Louis Cattiaux», titled Art et hermétisme, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium), containing the fourth edition of the Message Retrouvé.
– The first edition of the English translation of the Message Retrouvé, The Message Rediscovered, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium).
– The first Brazilian edition of A Mensagem Reencontrada, Madras Editora, São Paulo.
– The second Catalan edition of El Missatge Retrobat is published, Ed. Arola, Tarragona.
2006
– The fourth Spanish edition of El Mensaje Reencontrado is published, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium).
– The first French edition of the collection of excerpts from letters of Louis Cattiaux to his friends, published periodically in «Le Fil d’Ariane» (from 1980 to 1994) under the title Florilège Épistolaire in a work published by Raimon Arola on Cattiaux and his Message Retrouvé, titled Croire l’incroyable ou l’ancien et le nouveau dans l’histoire des religions, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium).
2007
– The pocket edition of the Message Retrouvé (sixth edition) is published, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium).
– The third Catalan edition of El Missatge Retrobat is published, Ed. Claret, Barcelona.
2009
– The pocket Catalan edition of El Missatge Retrobat is published, Ed. Claret, Barcelona.
2010
– The first German edition of Die Wiedergefundene Botschaft is published, Ed. Verlag Herder, Basel.
2011
– The fifth Spanish edition of El Mensaje Reencontrado is published, Ed. Herder, Barcelona.
2012
– The first English edition of the essay Physics and Metaphysics of Painting is published, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium).
– The second Spanish edition of the essay on painting Física y Metafísica de la Pintura is published, Ed. Arola, Tarragona.
2013
– The first English edition of the Florilège épistolaire is published under the title The Collected Letters of Louis Cattiaux, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium).
2015
– The seventh edition of the Message Retrouvé is published by Dervy, Paris.
2016
– The bilingual French/Catalan edition of Message Retrouvé/El Missatge Retrobat is published, Ed. Arola, Tarragona.
2018
– The first Portuguese edition of A Mensagem Reencontrada is published, Espiral Editora, Lisbon.
2022
– The second Brazilian edition of A Mensagem Reencontrada is published, Barco do Sol, São Paulo.
2023
– The sixth Spanish edition of El Mensaje Reencontrado is published, Ed. Herder, Barcelona.
– The third Brazilian edition of A Mensagem Reencontrada is published, Attar Editorial, São Paulo.
2024
– The traveling exhibition «Make way for Berthe Weill, art dealer of the Parisian Avant-Garde» from October 1, 2024, to March 1, 2025, at the Grey Art Museum in New York, features the work of Louis Cattiaux, showcasing the painting titled La Vierge attentive or La Vierge à l’étoile, a knife-painted canvas, a testament to the painter’s first pictorial stage.
– Publication of the Art Book: Cattiaux, un Art Magique, Éditions Philomène Alchimie, Lanmeur (France).
– The eighth edition of the Message Retrouvé, original version, revised and corrected text, is published by Éditions Philomène Alchimie, Lanmeur (France).
– The second edition of The Message Rediscovered, Éditions Philomène Alchimie, Lanmeur (France).
– The first Dutch edition of De Hervonden Boodschap is published, Beya Ed., Grez-Doiceau (Belgium).
2025
– Reissue of the eighth edition of the Message Retrouvé, original version, revised and corrected text, by Éditions Philomène Alchimie, Lanmeur (France).
– Second edition of Il Messaggio Ritrovato (revised and corrected text 2025), Éditions Philomène.
– The traveling exhibition «Berthe Weill, galeriste de l’avant-garde parisienne» will take place at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts from May 10 to September 7, 2025; it will feature the work of Louis Cattiaux, showcasing the painting titled The Attentive Virgin or The Virgin with the Star, a knife-painted artwork that reflects the painter’s first pictorial stage.
2026
– The traveling exhibition « Berthe Weill, galeriste de l’avant-garde parisienne » will take place at the Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris from October 8, 2025, to January 26, 2026; it will feature the work of Louis Cattiaux, showcasing the painting titled The Attentive Virgin or The Virgin with the Star, a knife-painted canvas that reflects the painter’s first pictorial stage.
The newspaper «Marianne» on June 21, 1939, published this press notice regarding the same work by Louis Cattiaux, which was exhibited in 1939 at the Berthe Weill Gallery in Paris:
