30 Sep 2015

Exhibition 'TRACES' | Paintings of Jean-Louis Germain

From October 20th to November 1st, 2015, painter Jean-Louis Germain will be unveiling 57 years of creation to the public in Paris, in an exhibition that spans his very first canvases from the 1960s to his most recent paintings from 2014 and 2015.

This solo exhibition, entitled 'TRACES', explores the various styles that have marked his development as a painter (including series 'fenêtres', 'les claustras', 'les traces horizontals', 'les baigneurs'…) and brings together around 20 large and mid-format works in a refined, modern hang.

Jean-Louis Germain was born in Algeria in 1935 and now spends his time between France and Morocco. He studied painting and drawing at an early age before traveling to California, where his encounter with works by American painters such as Rothko, Diebenkorn, Larry Rivers, Sam Francis and Barnett Newman introduced him to abstract art.

Gallerist Jean-Gabriel Mitterrand explains: 'In the 1970s, Jean-Louis Germain won fame and success exhibiting at the Galerie Lucien Durand on Rue Mazarine in Paris. It was his abstract painting that confirmed his reputation among collectors, who admired the architectural quality of his compositions and his subtle use of color.'

His Mediterranean origins fostered a penchant for natural light and a remarkable freedom to move from the figurative to the abstract without ever adhering to one single school.

Jean-Louis Germain explains that he 'loves open things. I think the traces left within a painting reveal more than the work itself. You also need to look at one painting in relation to another. What I like, personally, is the link that unites paintings and demonstrates a certain coherence (something you can only piece together over a period of many years!). I'd even say it was the only encouraging thing, this thread that I notice running through the works when I look back at them. This is also part of what I call my traces.'

Curator Anatole Maggiar's aim is to emphasize each detail and illustrate the rich painterly craftsmanship of Germain's work:

'When I first saw his work, I was struck by how contemporary it was in its painterly technique and thinking. I'm still fascinated by his consistency over 57 years of ceaseless painting! This constancy and precision throughout the years is testament to the creativity that inhabits Jean-Louis Germain.'

This exhibition is a nexus of two very different generations: 55 years separate Jean-Louis Germain and Anatole Maggiar. 'That's the origin of this retrospective yet dynamic selection: my contemporary perspective on his work, which led me to choose old works from his studio that can be linked with the art he produces today,' explains the young curator.

The exhibition 'TRACES' will be presented in Paris at Loft Sévigné, during the FIAC, from October 20 to November 1, 2015.