LE SALON DES
PETITS FORMATS
LE SALON DES
PETITS FORMATS
This show is dedicated to Bertrand Delacroix. I don’t think we will ever meet anyone who worked as hard or played as hard as Bertrand. He touched so many lives; the artists he worked with, thousands of clients, his employees and his many friends to whom he unselfishly opened up his home for a never-ending pARTy. The art world has lost a very unique and genuine person. – We miss you dearly.
axelle.com © 2015 Axelle and all Artists
François Anton Born in 1944 in Algeria, François Anton eventually settled in the South of France, where he now lives and works. He has been painting for over thirty years. Since 1975, Anton has exhibited his work in galleries in France, Switzerland and Germany as well as in several prominent art fairs. His work recalls the innocence and playfulness of childhood juxtaposed with the struggles of modern life. The frenetic energy of Anton’s subjects complements the loneliness and mystery surrounding his characters. These seemingly opposing forces are balanced by the artist’s light-hearted sense of humor. His oil on canvas pieces (often featuring mixed media components) capture the mischief of comic strips while remaining decidedly intelligent, witty and skillfully executed pieces of art.
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opposite top : Un vieux complice 16” x 12” opposite bottom : Les nouvelles fraîches 12” x 16” above left : Bonjour! Cher monsieur 12” x 16” above right : Je me sent léger 12’ x 16”
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Jean-Daniel Bouvard was born in 1957 in Saint-Etienne, France, where he spent most of his childhood. His talent and temperament were evident early on, when as a young boy he loved to draw and paint. He moved to Paris in 1976, where he pursued architectural studies until 1980. “My training in architecture provided me with a very strong understanding of space, the structure of a painting, and what to me is the most important thing—light. I learned about the laws of harmony, color and perspective, the combination of light and shadow to create moods.” It is a mood, then, rather than a particular place, which comprises the settings for his works. The ambiance or atmosphere is far more important to Bouvard than a particular physical locale.
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opposite top : Trapani V 11¼” x 17½” opposite bottom : Les Catalans 12¼” x 14½” above left : Cloitre III 14½” x 14½” above right : Belvedere II 15” x 12”
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Fabienne Delacroix Fabienne Delacroix, the youngest daughter of naïf master painter Michel Delacroix, is internationally celebrated for her charming and nostalgic depictions of the French country and seaside. Although her work can be linked stylistically to her father’s, she has certainly distinguished herself as a unique and talented artist in her own right. She has a mastery of light and color that is similar to that of French Impressionists. Until recently, Fabienne was known mainly for her seascapes and pastoral landscapes while her father was renowned for his Parisian cityscapes. However, at the end of 2014, Michel retired from painting and passed his legacy on to Fabienne who has now expanded her lists of subjects to include the streets of Paris. Like her father’s, Fabienne’s Paris is an older, simpler one with horse-drawn carriages filling the streets. Although she is now carrying on her father’s work, Fabienne continues to paint the French countryside, seaside and sometimes even Boston with her signature flair. She currently lives and works in Paris, France.
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opposite top : Thanksgiving snow 12” x 16” opposite bottom : Premier flocons sur le Champ de Mars 12” x 16” above left : Nuit froide 12” x 16” above right : Chevet de Notre-Dame sous la neige 12” x 16”
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Michel Delacroix Michel Delacroix was born in 1933 on the Left Bank, in the 14th Arrondissement of Paris. He started painting at the early age of seven just as the German Occupation of Paris began. Paris as it was during the Occupation is the Paris that appears in his paintings even today; there was a virtual absence of automobiles and streetlights, the city was quiet and isolated. His cityscapes display a simpler Paris of the past, of his boyhood rather than the urban metropolis of today. Delacroix was educated at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and spent years experimenting with several different painting styles until, at the age of 35, he began producing works in the Naïf tradition, his characteristic style. Throughout the course of his career, Delacroix has been honored with numerous awards and his work can be found in several public and private collections.
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opposite top : Rue Croulebarbe sous la neige 10” x 12” opposite bottom : Chez Petit Louis 9” x 10” above left : Neige rue de Grenelle 13” x 13” above right : Voulez-vous des fleurs? 4” x 3½”
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Philippe H. Dequesne Belgian artist Philippe Herman Dequesne was trained as an architect at the Institut St-Luc in Belgium. Afterwards, he studied under the painter Rémy Aron at the Ateliers Beaux-Arts in Paris. In 1999, he began teaching drawing at the Ecole Supérieure des Arts et Techniques in Paris. He has been exhibiting his work in France and Belgium since 1995 and his work is in private collections in Germany, Australia, Belgium, Colombia, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Switzerland and across the US. He now lives and works in Paris, France. Although Dequesne was trained as an architect and teaches drawing, he is known for his painting. He creates dreamlike still lifes, landscapes, interiors and seascapes in a style that he has distinguished as his own. His luminous paintings use thick layers of paint, subdued color palettes and sensitive attention to detail. His works lack the noise of human intervention and thus become quiet and calm little worlds; the gentle lighting and carefully articulated forms come together to create figurative scenes that verge on abstraction.
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opposite top : Jeune filles 15¾” x 15¾” opposite bottom : Still life 15¾” x 15¾” above left : Pears 15¾” x 15¾” above right : Fleurs 15¾” x 15¾”
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Goxwa Goxwa began painting at a very young age and enrolled at the Saint Martin School of Art. Years later, she moved to Boston where she attended Emerson College for film studies. In 1993 she was awarded fellowship at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris. Her encaustic works on canvas defy categorization. Although she draws inspiration from ancient frescos, her paintings have a very contemporary feel. Goxwa explores all genres, yet all of her paintings have the same element of mystery and intrigue. In 1993 she had her first of many solo exhibitions. Since then she has shown in various cities including Paris, New York, Strasbourg and San Francisco. Goxwa currently resides in Paris and her exhibitions continue to draw crowds of admirers and collectors.
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opposite top : Towards the light 10½” x 18” opposite bottom : Maltese Tree 18” x 10½” above left : Upper Barrakka 9½” x 13¾” above right : Palmyra 13¾” x 10½”
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Albert Hadjiganev Born in 1954 in Bulgaria to a family of artists, Albert Hadjiganev fantasized of an artistic Parisian existence throughout childhood. He studied photography in Sofia, Bulgaria and was influenced by the work of his painter father and his sculptor brother. However, he constantly kept sight of his ultimate goal: to study at the prestigious Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. At the age of 28, he left his native home and walked across the border. After numerous hardships, he finally reached Paris. By 1987, his struggle paid off and he reached his goal – he graduated from the Ecole des Beaux Arts. He has lived in France ever since. His artistic peers in Paris quickly recognized Hadjiganev’s distinctive talent. In 1989, he was the recipient of the coveted Grand Prix de Peinture of the Academie des Beaux-Arts. Selected from more than one thousand artists, his paintings were shown across France and Europe. In 1990, he received the Prix du Gouvernement Princier at the Salon International d’Art Contemporain in Monaco.
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opposite top : Eglise en Aubrac 15¾” x 15¾” opposite bottom : La Terrasse de JD 15¾” x 15¾” above left : Bar - Restaurant 15¾” x 15¾” above right : Soir à Honfleur 15¾” x 15¾”
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Laurent Hours Laurent Hours’ paintings feed on a peculiar atmosphere; he offers viewers snapshots of memory in dreamlike settings. He recounts stories with depictions comprised of natural elements, of the earth, water, stone and sun. He creates stories of towns which have vanished or perhaps never existed, of oceans and deserts splashed in ochre. His scenes are warm and strong, and settings in which his minute figures often attempt to claim it, like a string of froth clinging to the sand. Laurent Hours works with varnish, he decided on such a unique medium because it allows him to produce works that evoke the feeling of ancient frescos and the sense of the passage of time. Hours finds inspiration in crumbling walls, ancient architecture, prevailing relics of ancient monuments. His application of archeological melancholy in his work reflects the state of the past. Over time, Hours has slowly given way to a simplified work, more poetical in its enigmatic images.
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opposite top : A Walk with Nestor 16” x 13” opposite bottom : The Armchair 16” x 13” above left : The Bird 16” x 13” above right : The Shade 16” x 13”
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Philippe Charles Jacquet Philippe Charles Jacquet is not simply a painter of landscapes; he is a creator. Jacquet has mastered the ability to combine what is real and what is imagined. As a result, his compositions, heavily inspired by Brittany coasts and estuaries, have an element of the sublime and register deeply with the subconscious. Although he paints sparse landscapes there is something fundamentally pleasing in the surreal, idealized quality of his work. Jacquet was trained as an architect at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs. After pursuing his career in architecture, he decided to dedicate himself solely to painting and has been doing so for six years. One can detect his background in architecture in his heavily symmetrical, geometric landscapes. However, he successfully offsets the very calculated appearance of architectural compositions with rich colors and an intriguing variety of surfaces ranging from glass-like water to rusted, flaking hulls of barges.
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opposite top : La cabane abandonée 15¾” x 15¾” opposite bottom : Un horizon parfait 15¾” x 15¾” above left : Les grands froids 15¾” x 15¾” above right : Un riverain 15¾” x 15¾”
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Lucy MacGillis A Berkshire Massachusetts native who has made her home in Italy for the past fourteen years, MacGillis combines an appreciation of Cezanne and Morandi with her own unique style to create exquisite oil paintings of her life in Italy. Born in 1977 in Massachusetts, MacGillis recalls an early elementary school field trip to The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts that helped inspire her to become an artist. She went on to graduate from the University of Pennsylvania and afterwards studied at the former International School of Art in Italy where she fell in love with painting. In 2000, she received a post-graduate grant to paint in Italy and decided to stay; she has lived there ever since. She currently resides and works in Umbria with her son. When she is not working on her own art, she teaches painting workshops both in the US and in Italy.
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opposite top : XXXIX Giugno 16” x 32” opposite bottom : Marzamemi, L’Angolo 8” x 8” above left : Il Pino, Vendicari 12” x 16” above right : Piero d’Inverno 14” x 12”
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Patrick Pietropoli Patrick Pietropoli was a teacher of political studies for several years before becoming a professional artist. Trained as both a painter and a sculptor, his oil on linen paintings have both an antique feel and a very contemporary freeness. Drawing inspiration from the style of old masters such as Titian and Velasquez, Pietropoli creates grand figural compositions and cityscapes. He paints the carefully articulated architecture of Paris, New York, Rome and other major cities as well as delicate nudes. His nudes capture a moment in time where he defines the relationship between form and freedom. To the viewer, a simple color field becomes a stable wall behind the figure. Each painting, due to its observed patience, is timeless.With small amounts of paint and a restricted palette, he brings an intimate texture and space to his paintings. He has executed commissions in the form of frescoes and monumental sculpture for the Mutualite Francaise and has consistently exhibited his work in Italy, France, Belgium and America. Pietropoli has been recognized as an established artist in France since the mid 1980’s. His solo exhibitions in the United States and abroad draw both collectors and admirers.
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opposite top : Piazza 16” x 12” opposite bottom : Groupe 16” x 12” above left : Façade bleue 16” x 12” above right : Baronne rouge 12” x 16”
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Eric Roux-Fontaine Roux-Fontaine was born in 1966 in the Savoy Region of France. He enrolled at the Fine Art School of Saint-Etienne at the young age of 17 and graduated Suma Cum Laude 5 years later. Since his first solo exhibition in 1991, he has enjoyed sellout shows and overwhelming success throughout Europe. In 1995, the Musée des Beaux-arts of the city of Chambéry and the Musée Paul Dini of the city of Villefranche-sur-Saône acquired works which to date are part of their permanent collections. The Museum of the city of Lyon and the Centre de Cultura Contemporania of Barcelona (Barcelona Contemporary Arts Center) both featured his work in 2008. The same year, Spanish private arts foundation Josep Niebla presented his first retrospective. In 2011, he was a guest speaker at the renowned TED event in Lyon. His work was recently featured at the Rotterdam, Paris, London and Dublin art fairs. His studio is now in Lyon, France but he spends a great deal of time gathering inspiration for his work by traveling internationally.
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opposite top : Theater Scene II 16” x 16” opposite bottom : Moon Dust 16” x 16” above left : Theater Scene III 16” x 16” above right : Theater Scene I 16” x 16”
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Benoît Trimborn French artist Trimborn is renowned for his large-scale, stunning landscapes in oil on canvas. Trimborn, trained as an architect, categorizes his work as “contemporary impressionism”; by this, he is referencing his unusual approach to ordinary subjects, his emphasis on the ethereal quality of light and his focus on the natural world. Trimborn’s extensive country and water scenes lack human forms thus they encourage contemplation and a careful study of nature. While the presence of humanity is, at times, hinted at by a well-maintained field of crops or pasture of cows, his paintings tend to highlight the immeasurable vastness of nature and the relative smallness of everything else. His work brilliantly captures the changing seasons, the fleeting visions reflected in his pools of water and the complex relationships between light, water and the sky.
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opposite top : Cigogne 9½” x 16” opposite bottom : Vaches II 13” x 16” above left : Lapin XXX 15¾” x 15¾” above right : Deux lapins I 15¾” x 15¾”
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Philippe Vasseur Philippe Vasseur was born in November 1954 in Lisieux, France. Woodworking, his family’s craft, was his earliest inspiration and made an indelible impression on his young mind. He realized early on that his ambitions would one day be manifested through work he would create with his own hands. At eighteen, Vasseur left Normandie for London to enroll in the London Academy of Drawing. A year later he was admitted into the prestigious Ecole Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he studied drawing and art history. His work received almost immediate recognition. While he was still in school, his drawings were exhibited in Parisian galleries. In 1976, Gallimard, famous book publisher of classical literature by such authors as William Styron, Truman Capote and Caldwell, attracted millions of readers and placed the twenty-one year-old visionary on the map by creating engaging jacket covers with his images.
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opposite top : Les quais 11¾” x 11¾” opposite bottom : Café vert 13” x 9½” above left : Trottoir 15¾” x 15¾” above right : Pieton 10¾” x 15”
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François Anton Jean-Daniel Bouvard Fabienne Delacroix Michel Delacroix Philippe H. Dequesne
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Goxwa Albert Hadjiganev Laurent Hours Philippe Charles Jacquet Lucy MacGillis Patrick Pietropoli Eric Roux-Fontaine Benoît Trimborn Philippe Vasseur
LE SALON DES
PETITS FORMATS
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