monday Print

Information about Michel Guillou are both In English and French Michel Guillou began to paint at the age of 16. During the 80' he started a carrier in the comic strip industry in Belgium and published several works. Slowly a feeling of discomfort influenced the decision of leaving the comic strip world - a too narrowed expression mean, according to him - and he started to paint again. After a short -cut through abstract paintings Michel settled in what really moved him as an artist: Painting is all in shadows and lights, colors, reflects and perspectives. Sketches and photography taken from the ordinary life are the basis of his work. Although he does not portraits the characters he chooses. He would even refuse to name his works "portraits". If one can speculate about Michel's work one may say the artist's goal is to reach something through the subject. What is it then? What soars out is a feeling of loss, like slivers of time in a hand full of sand. Therefore you can look at the painting as you look at your own perception of finitude; maybe the fear of living an endless voyage in between two states: Limbo, as they call it in the Catholic religion. This probably explains some have a feeling of morbidity when they get close to Michel's work. It is not that. It is depicting a situation where the painted subject is putting us in contact with what's beneath and what is underneath the material world, a blurry vision of one's soul and the soul's expectations. ---- Michel Guillou commença à peindre à l'âge de 16 ans. Durant les années 80 ' il entreprit une carrière dans la bande dessinée, en Belgique, et publia plusieurs tomes d'une série réaliste. Lentement un sentiment de malaise s'installa et influa sur la décision de quitter le monde de la bande dessinée - une possibilité d'expression trop restreinte, selon lui. Michel Guillou recommença à peindre. Après un bref détour dans le champ de la peinture abstraite, Michel se recentra sur les bases de son art : la peinture est avant tout ombres et lumières, couleurs, reflets et perspectives. Croquis et photographies pris à partir de la vie quotidienne sont la base de son travail, bien que le but ne soit en aucun cas le portrait : il refuserait certainement de décrire ses Å“uvres comme étant des portraits. A spéculer sur le travail de Michel on pourrait en dire que l'objectif de l'artiste est de traverser le sujet, et non de le décrire ou de le reproduire.