“When a subject is no longer clearly outlined,
spaces for imagination and memory open up.”
Philippe Cognée
Since its invention in the middle of
the 19th Century the photograph has become a competitor to and a
collaborator with painting. For in essence they are the two sides of the same coin:
the visual expression of an idea and other places of interest. And whilst the relatively
new kid on the block has yet to reach the gravitas of its older sister in the
eyes of some, increasingly artists have incorporated both into their work.
One such artist is Frenchman Philippe Cognée
who uses photographs, video stills, and found images from the internet in
general and the satellite images from Google’s street views in particular as
the basis for his paintings. He renders these views using charcoal, graphite and
encaustic (paint mixed with Bee’s wax) which he then heats
and crushes with a domestic iron. The result, as the charcoal explodes, the
line breaks up and the paint melts is a semi abstract depiction of the scene.
Utilizing subject matter that covers the whole gamut
of traditional painting genres from still life’s to landscapes, both urban and
rural, from portraiture to copy’s of old maters Cognée
explores the role of painting in the 21st Century.
The transitory
nature of the digital world, best encapsulated in the 24 hour news cycle or the
five to ten minute life of the average twitter message, is investigated in Cognée’s
work through his vague renderings that demand the viewer’s input from their
memories, real or imagined. The right or wrong of accuracy is abandoned for the
momentary now that each member of the audience, prejudices intact, brings to
the encounter.
Cognée’s current exhibition Territoires is
on show at Brussels’ Galerie
Daniel Templon until the 21st of February.
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