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Quadriptyque
1992
Philippe Carpentier
Mixed media
125 x 125 cm
Carpentier’smeeting with the Japanese calligrapher Shunso machi in 1982 marked a turningpoint in his career. In 1984, he created his first polyptychs on paper, and in1986 his work went on display at the central museum in Ginza. The art of theFar-East clearly influences his work which is reminiscent of the techniquesused and the atmosphere created by Japanese woodcuts.
These references are highlighted by thedivision of the work into panels and by the treatment of colours which arespaced out in liquid or cloudy zones. The colours are similar to the ink usedin calligraphy.
Painter Philippe Carpentier has a deep love of the sea and uses the liquid element in all its forms: watercolour, Indian ink, distemper, water mixed with glue. From Japan, he came back with a fondness for beautiful paper, on which he explores his much vaunted “watery medium”. Ever since he met the famous calligrapher, Shunso Machi, in 1982, he has retained an attachment to authentic brushwork, brushwork that refuses any amendment and guarantees total sincerity. His preference for broad surfaces is inspired by the Japanese screens. The reference to woodcuts is emphasized by the way he divides the picture-plane into panels and treats his colours in superposed stretches of water and cloud.
Ginza Museum, Tokyo, UNESCO Paris
Artworks of
Philippe Carpentier
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