French painter, born in Marseilles. In 1896 he moved to Paris, where he studied at the École des *Beaux-Arts alongside *Manguin, *Marquet, and *Matisse. With them he became a member of the *Fauves, but although he shared their liking for pure and bright colour, his work was less extreme. In 1916 he met *Renoir, whose paintings greatly impressed him, and from this time Camoin's work belongs more to the *Impressionist tradition than to any of the revolutionary movements of the 20th century. *Bonnard was another major influence on him. His work was varied in subject, his large output including portraits, still-lifes, interiors, landscapes, and nudes, all painted with an air of freshness and spontaneity.