09 january 2024, Flor Linckens
Figuration and abstraction in the work of Aurélie Gravas
Until 21 January 2024, Kristof De Clercq Gallery in Ghent is displaying a solo exhibition by Aurélie Gravas. In the exhibition, the French artist shows a series of drawings and paintings that highlight the latest developments in her artistic practice.
“Painting is a medium that requires patience from the viewer and is therefore in contradiction with our times. Today, we are used to being served now or never. Painting is neither now nor ever. I find it an absolute act of resistance. It's like gardening and waiting for a flower to grow, like making a baby, like being in love, like playing a musical instrument or even listening to music. Painting, has always - and I believe, forever - is a medium which can produce the best and the worst, but in any case whose limits we will never be able to explore. Whatever we say, whatever we do, we will never be able to get to the bottom of painting.”
Naast schilderijen maakt de kunstenaar ook collages, waarvoor ze uitgesneden en beschilderde vormen combineert tot nieuwe en speelse assemblages. In sommige gevallen maakt ze daarvoor gebruik van magnetische elementen in plaats van lijm. Voor andere werken kiest ze voor materialen als houtskool of spuitverf.
In addition to paintings, the artist also creates collages, in which she combines cut-out and painted shapes to form new and playful assemblages. In some cases, she uses magnetic elements instead of glue for this purpose. For other works, she opts for materials like charcoal or spray paint.
Gravas was born in Paris in 1977. She studied painting at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Marseille and later settled in Brussels, where she continues to live and work. She has participated in various residency programs, and her work has been exhibited in France, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Her work will be featured in a solo exhibition at the blue chip gallery Almine Rech in the fall, following its introduction during last year's Frieze Week in their London space as part of the group exhibition 'Celebrating Picasso Today: Infinite Modernism.' In June, her work will be showcased in New York at Thierry Goldberg gallery. Alongside her artistic practice, Gravas is also active as a musician in the pop band La Femme d’Ali.
