3/25: Georges Mathieu, Painting
This
work represents the artist and intuitive interpretations of his take on
history. To him, spontaneity and
impulsiveness in art were best represented by the speed with which the work had
been created. Just so, he created many
works of art by directly applying paint from the tube to the canvas in quick
slashing motions. Mathieu chose titles
of famous battles and events in history to instill his belief onto others that
although he was painting in such an abstract style, he was still a “history
painter”. Often times, he would even
dress up in a suit of armor and paint before an audience in his slashing style,
almost as if he were attacking the canvas.
This kind of performance was later popularized in the latter half of the
century. Turning to the work itself, the
piece obviously displays the characteristics of Mathieu’s style as well as
representing the Art Informel movement. The movement was one of proud abstraction,
but not as some might think. Meaning “formless”
in French, the style was characterized by blurring the lines between methods of
creating art. The movement emphasized
spontaneity, freedom of thought, and freedom of form. While many of the paintings were abstract,
the point was just as much finding new tools and methods of creating art as it
was in the art itself created. A new
antithesis had been created; this time, as an alternative to geometric
abstraction.
A little more on Art
Informel:
The artist’s career:
The Song of Roland (the character
Mathieu often seemed to portray in his performances):
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