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Georges Mathieu Drip Abstract Tachism Painting

Name: Georges Mathieu Drip Abstract Tachism Painting
Brand: Georges Mathieu
Rating: 4.9 (44 reviews)

$25,000List Price

About the Item

Georges Mathieu Tube Drip Abstract 1952 Tachism Painting on Paper Signed by French Listed Artist 1921-2012. This painting is an early "tubism" painting red on a field of brown painted on ivory art paper. This has been newly custom archivally framed with UV protective glazing, and floated with enough space that the dimensional red paint "squiggles" are not damaged. Note: Frame size 28 h x 32 x x 1.5 deep Note: Image size (the painted field of brown paint) is approximately 16 h x 20 w. About the artist: Considered the founder of Lyrical Abstraction—a movement distinct from geometric abstraction in the organic style of its forms—and the organizer of the “Abstraction Lyrique” exhibition held in Paris in 1947, Georges Mathieu is best known for his large-scale paintings featuring curving calligraphic lines. Mathieu was a colorful and famous personality during his lifetime, often creating paintings during public performances, working rapidly in front of the audience. The speed of his execution was a signature component of his style, which he once described as “an orgasm of uncontrolled expression.” Mathieu also claimed to be the first to practice “Tubism”—squeezing paint directly from the tube—and the drip technique. 1950 onward, an element of Lyrical abstraction is conceptualized: tachism, which refers to paintings of Georges Mathieu, symbol of informal art, as the projection creates spots, splashes and drips. The aim is to give as much freedom to the material, by influencing their movement in a minimal manner. The aim is to paint spontaneously, furtively and without thinking things through, letting yourself evolve peacefully. It's important to detach oneself from any artistic compliance. Georges Mathieu doesn't use any tool, and goes beyond technique. He paints directly with the color tubes. The artist created several works publicly. Malraux calls him "The Western calligrapher". Georges Mathieu did over 120 individual exhibitions during his career, especially in New-York, Montreal, Rio de Janeiro, Bahrain, Tunis, Singapore, Paris, Tokyo and in all major metropolis of the world. His creations are part of more than 79 museums and public collections. including Institute of Contemporary Arts, London (1956); the Kunstmuseum, Basel (1958) ; the São Paulo Museum of Modern Art (1960); and the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nantes, France (1966)., as well as the Art Institute of Chicago; the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC; the Kunstmuseum Basel; the Kunsthaus Zurich; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris; the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; and the Tate, London and others.

Creator:
Georges Mathieu (Artist)
Dimensions:
Height: 28 in (71.12 cm)Width: 32 in (81.28 cm)Depth: 1.5 in (3.81 cm)
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Glass,Paper,Hand-Painted
Place of Origin:
France
Period:
Mid-20th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1952
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
West Palm Beach, FL
Reference Number:
Seller: AM1stDibs: LU928319865252

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Georges Mathieu

Georges Mathieu was born at Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais) in 1921. Mathieu studied literature and philosophy at Lille University before switching to art at the age of twenty-one. He taught English at Douai High School and French at the American University of Biarritz. After an interest in realistic landscapes and portraits, Mathieu developed a distinctive Abstract Expressionist style, which grew out of an emotionally driven, improvised, and intuitive act of painting. In 1946 his first exhibition was presented at VI Salon de moins de 30 ans at the Galerie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. His first personal exhibition was in 1950 at the Galerie René Drouin. In 1947 Mathieu worked with Camille Bryen to organize a tachist-oriented exhibition, which he designated as ‘non-figuration physique’. His painting defined ‘lyrical abstractions’, goes beyond traditional and formal constraints of regulative systems, placing Mathieu with Fautrier and Dubuffet as an important exponent of French Informel, as defined by the French art critic Tapiè. Up to 1951, Mathieu continued to organize group shows to demonstrate his interest in Jackson Pollock’s spontaneous gestural handling of paint. In those years he, among his numerous exhibitions, organized an event to show the difference between American and European painting styles at the Montparnasse Gallery.His artworks were appreciated internationally and exposed in London and New York. His first paintings were defined tachists by critics because of the artist’s use of lumps of color (tache, in fact, means stain) directly applied on canvas. His works are apparently confused but they all have a central axis from which curves and lines develop in a planned way.In 1950 his projects were no more focused on signs but on painting gestures and quickness. His painting was intuitive and irrational. From 1954 Mathieu staged the painting of large-scale works as theatrical events, culminating in utilizing 800 tubes of paint to create a painting measuring 4 x 12 meters in front of an audience of 2000 at the Théâtre Sarah-Bernhardt in 1956. Somewhere between Happening and Action Painting, Mathieu succeeded in producing a decoratively linear painting, reminiscent of calligraphy. Mathieu continued to perform his Action Paintings throughout Europe and Japan. He went to Japan together with Tapié to meet the Gutai Group. There he executed a kimono performance during an action-painting show. During this event, he also realized 21 artworks and among these, we find a 15 m painting. Mathieu’s works were shown at special exhibitions in Paris and New York in 1950 and 1952. He participated in numerous international exhibitions, including Documenta II in 1959. In the early 1960s, Mathieu also created sculptures and designed furniture, tapestries, and frescoes. In 1975 he was elected a member of the Arts Academy in Paris and in 1986 he exposed his works at Biennale di Venezia. Georges Mathieu was defined as the founder of Tachism and art theorist in the essay “Au-delà du Tachisme”. He also composed essays on architecture, furniture, and typography.