Kategori: Nisan

STÉPHANE JOANNES, TANKERS, March 19- April 18, 2015

Tanker 02, Oil & Glycerin on Canvas, 27½” x 82½”

This March, BERTRAND DELACROIX GALLERY is thrilled to introduce the work of contemporary French painter STÉPHANE JOANNES. His new collection, entitled Tankers, features large oil on canvas paintings of huge, solitary cargo ships surrounded by the vast sky and water. His traditional subjects are made contemporary by Joannes’ clean lines, bold delineations of space and hints of abstraction.

Joannes’ paintings are typically long, horizontal pieces, sometimes diptychs or triptychs over eight feet long. He breaks his paintings up into three distinct sections: the sea, the sky and the sea vessel on the horizon. The air and water seem vast and are often blocked off with a single, bold color. His ships, on the other hand, are incredibly detailed with each drip of rust and weathering carefully articulated. These orange and brown drops reveal not only the ship’s past but also the painting’s history– they are visible evidence of the painter’s brushstrokes and artistic process. The busy, overlapping vertical streaks provide an interesting contrast to the otherwise clean, precise lines the artist uses.

Born in 1975 in Besançon, France, the painter studied at L’Ecole Superieure des Arts Decoratifs in Strasbourg, France. Joannes’ first exhibition in 1997 was mainly black and white figurative paintings of nudes. However, after a visit to Le Havre, a waterfront town in France, the artist became fascinated by the large sea ships he saw there. He is now most known for his work on this subject.

For further information, prices and photographic material please contact Elizabeth Thompson at 212-627-4444 or email info@bdgny.com.  Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm.

A la croisé des chemins, 38″ x 51″                          Les beaux jours, 76¾” x 51″   Soir aux Mouretons, 28¾” x 39″

Hadjiganev’s depiction of nature is wild and overgrown, ripe with dramatic shadows and brilliant light.  The extraordinary quality of the artist’s paintings is derived not from his subjects, which are often as simple as an apple on a windowsill, but from his sensitive treatment of light, color and shadows. Hadjiganev paints with bold brushstrokes and shades of green, greys and blues. Deep emotion, stark contrasts and unusual framed perspectives characterize his work. His large oils on canvas capture the conflicting dualities inherent in the natural world – light and dark, freedom and control, beauty and melancholy. His works maintain a delicate balance between a sense of foreboding and one of welcoming– many paintings actually invite the viewer to step into the scene through an open door or window. In others, the dark, grey skies loom over sweeping landscapes, often with just a small hint of the emerging sun. Hadjiganev’s landscapes are simultaneously perceptive impressions of the physical world and visual representations of the artist’s life, struggles and views on humanity. Hadjiganev states:

“I do not know what is to come. It is the canvas that decides- I am merely a tool. I become very small. I do not paint to make something pretty. I paint to put my heart in my paintings.”

Born in 1954 in Bulgaria to a family of artists, Hadjiganev was constantly influenced by his father’s paintings and brother’s sculptures. In 1977, he enrolled at The National School of Photography in Sofia, Bulgaria. However, he constantly kept sight of his ultimate goal: to study at the prestigious Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. At the age of 28, he left his native home and walked across the border. After numerous hardships, he finally reached Paris. By 1987, his struggle paid off and he reached his goal – he graduated from the Ecole des Beaux Arts. He has lived in France ever since.  In 1989, he was the recipient of the coveted Grand Prix de Peinture of the Academie des Beaux-Arts and in 1990, he received the Prix du Gouvernement Princier at the Salon International d’Art Contemporain in Monaco. Since then, Hadjiganev has had over 40 solo exhibitions in the US and in Europe. Hadjiganev will attend the opening reception at Axelle on March 7.

For further information, prices and photographic material, please contact Elizabeth Thompson at212.226.2262 or email info@axelle.com Gallery hours are from 10:00am to 6:00pm every day.