Bernard Aubertin - Livre Brulè Installation

Bernard Aubertin (1934 in Fontenay-aux-Roses, France-2015 Reutlingen in Germany). Around 1951 he began his apprenticeship at the School of Decorative Art. The encounter with Yves Klein in 1957 was dazzling, which led him to create his first four red monochrome plates the following year. His research is characterized by the exclusive use of red, a privileged color scheme and symbol of blood, life and earth and at the same time of the fire element. In 1961 he took part in the ZERO group in Düsseldorf together with Mack, Piene, Uecker and in 1957/58 in the NUL group in Amsterdam. Also get in touch with Piero Manzoni and Lucio Fontana. In parallel with the monochromes, in 1961 he created his first Tableaux feu (fire pictures), and in 1962 the first burnt books which he would resume with Livres brûlés et à Brûler (burned books and books to burn). Red and fire are the two elements that structure Aubertin's artistic language: from the Tableaux clous (paintings nails) that covered with paint perfectly represent the flames; to the Tableaux fils de fer (iron wire paintings), to the Dessin de feu (drawings of fire) or even the Parcours d'allumettes (paths of matches), up to the performances of pianos set on fire and burnt cars. In the last period of his painting, the artist replaced red in his monochrome paintings with the colors of combustion: black, brown, grey, red-orange and gold.