Portrait of my Adoptive Mother, Pâquerette. View of the installation
Portrait
de ma mère adoptive,
Pâquerette, 2006
“ The portrait of my adoptive mother Pâquerette is the origin of the Portrait(s) series. Marguerite Brochard,
one of my adoptive mothers who everyone called Pâquerette,
had been a nun, a “little sister of the poor”.
She had been forced
to quit her vocation because she was too fragile to endure the hard life in the convent. ”
Photograph of Jean as a child
research for Portrait of my Adoptive Mother, Pâquerette
family archive, 1947
Portrait of my Adoptive Mother, Pâquerette
detail of the material, pencil drawing on fine art papier, 2006
The central panel of this triptych is a
black and white photograph in the 4x5 format, a portrait of Marguerite on her
90th birthday. Her pose suggests great tenderness, but also palpable
omnipresence.
The two side panels are pencil drawings by the artist based on a childhood photograph. At first glance, the resemblance seems obvious, yet these are two drawings that the artist produced in two distinct ways, one more meticulously than the other.
The double presence of the artist in the finished work evokes the formation of ideas. The birth of his creative force, through the curls of thoughts coming out of his head, lets him define his identity.
The two side panels are pencil drawings by the artist based on a childhood photograph. At first glance, the resemblance seems obvious, yet these are two drawings that the artist produced in two distinct ways, one more meticulously than the other.
The double presence of the artist in the finished work evokes the formation of ideas. The birth of his creative force, through the curls of thoughts coming out of his head, lets him define his identity.
Portrait of my Adoptive Mother, Pâquerette, detail of the hands, 2006
Photograph of Pâquerette as a child,
research for Portrait of my Adoptive Mother, Pâquerette family archive,
early 20th century
research for Portrait of my Adoptive Mother, Pâquerette family archive,
early 20th century
Portrait of my Adoptive Mother, Pâquerette, detail of the material, pencil drawing on fine art papier, 2006
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