THE ARTIST

◀ 塩田千春《存在的狀態(書) 》2019 金屬 書 黑線 20(長) x 20(寬) x 20(高) cm 羅芙奧台北2021春拍「現代與當代藝術」Lot 225 Chiharu SHIOTA, State of Being (Books), 2019, metal frame, books, black thread, 20(L) x 20(W) x 20(H) cm Ravenel Spring Auction 2021 Modern & Contemporary Art, lot 225

▶ 塩田千春《存在的狀態(報紙)》金屬 報紙 白線 50(長) x 30(寬) x 50(高) cm 羅芙奧台北2021春拍 「現代與當代藝術」Lot 224 Chiharu SHIOTA, State of Being (Children's Dress), State of Being (Newspaper), metal frame, newspaper, white thread, 50(L) x 30(W) x 50(H) cm Ravenel Spring Auction 2021 Modern & Contemporary Art, lot 224

household items are suspended by tens of millions of threads, sharing the memory of the artist's sympathetically touches the viewer's heart like a pouring tide with waves. Chiharu Shiota's works describe emotions, life, and even more connections with people. Although life is limited, she is convinced that even though the body is dead, the soul will live forever. After recurrence of the cancer being diagnosed 12 years ago, she holds the belief in recreating the traces and impermanence of life with thread. The red thread symbolizes that the color of blood interweaves the relationship between people, the black thread as if the night sky or the universe, intertwines into an infinite space, and the white yarn represents new life and eternity, reflecting the artist's viewpoint of life and death, as she often lingers between. This Spring Sale 2021 Ravenel proudly presents three pieces of classic installation art by the artist in different colors, "State of Being (Dress)", "State of Being (Newspaper)" and "State of Being (Book)". She explores the close connection between our inner emotions and tangible objects, presents "the sense of being in absence". Only the art that touches people's hearts and allows viewers to deeply understand her comprehension of the impermanent in life is the ultimate salvation pursued by the artist.

Currently living in Berlin, Chiharu Shiota receives endless invitation to international exhibitions even to this day. She represented Japan at the Venice Biennale in 2015, and her solo exhibition at the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo in 2019, the number of visitors has exceeded six hundred thousand in the end proves the influence of her works. "Chiharu Shiota Exhibition: The Soul Trembles" based on her life in Berlin, and is her largest solo exhibition to date. Known as one of the "most grand art exhibitions of 2019" in Japan, Mori Art Museum has received unrepeatable and unique reviews and unprecedented success. When Taipei Fine Arts Museum announced to expect an opening of her exhibition on May 1, which undoubtedly brings expectation and attention from all walks of life. Shiota's ability to touch people's heart without words has also made great achievements in auctions last year. Starting from 2020, the popularity of her works has grown in the auction market, and the trend is noticeably actively rising. Faced with the rapid changes of times and the impact of multiculturalism, the artist who has both excelled in the academic and art markets, has a high degree of personal differentiation. Both the domestic and overseas art stages have invested a great deal of attention on her, making people even more looking forward to her performance in the market in future.

FIGURATION LIBRE ROBERT COMBAS

狂野自由 的畫筆 羅伯‧貢巴斯

Text / 陳惠黛 Odile Chen Photo / Ravenel International Art Group、Atelier Robert Combas、 Strouk Gallery, Paris

法國跨界大師羅伯．貢巴斯，畫家、漫畫家、雕塑家， 亦是搖滾樂手、作曲家，他為生命中各個斜槓角色投注以熱 情，沒有最狂只有更狂。留有一頭年輕時代的標誌捲髮，講 話時如機關槍般的急促快速，興致所至，夾雜著一連串手勢 動作，過動兒似的搖晃身體，難得片刻寧靜空白。畫如其人， 貢巴斯的繪畫也是華麗豐彩、大膽露骨，畫面塗滿色塊圖案 線條，甚至以黑白線框凸顯形象，巧妙嵌入畫面的 Combas 簽名，也會加上一圈圈輪廓線框，熱切與觀者分享情感。

▲ 創作中的貢巴斯，約1982年 Courtesy of Atelier Robert Combas

◀ 羅伯．貢巴斯《波斯傳奇》1994 壓克力 畫布 261 x 208.5 cm 羅芙奧2021春拍 薈萃國際：現代與當代藝術 Lot 036 Robert Combas, Persian Romances, 1994, Acrylic on canvas, 261 x 208.5 cm, Ravenel Spring Auction 2021 SELECT: Modern & Contemporary Art, Lot 036

不知是偶然或巧合，事業竄起不久的美國塗鴉畫家凱斯．哈林 Keith Haring，1984 年 12 月參加巴黎法國國立當代美術館的「自由具象 5/5：法國 / 美國」聯展（《Figuration Libre, 5/5, France/USA》, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris）過後，幾個月後也他的畫裡採用與 貢巴斯類似的古怪人物圖樣，研判可能曾受到彼此的啟發與影響。

1980 年代法國「自由具象」領導者

儘管出生於優雅的法蘭西，貢巴斯的生猛性格比較傾向英美龐 克火辣作風。他曾說：「我不愛法國香頌，聽的是英國或美國的搖滾 或龐克音樂。」1970 年代他的創作畫風，被稱之為「有趣的繪畫」 （Fun Painting），帶有貶抑之意，直到 1981 年到前輩藝術家本．沃 捷（Benjamin Vautier, 1935 年生，簡稱 Ben Vautier）以「自由具象」 （Figuration Libre）一詞為之正名，得以登上大雅之堂。他的藝術非常 的人性化，無論在繪畫或是音樂的創作之路，都瘋狂地投入。從最情色， 到最黑暗、甚至暴力，狂野無所不用其極。打造情感和感知的殿堂。

貢巴斯為法國「自由具象」團體的主要創始人，好友迪羅沙兄弟（Di Rosa）等為共同成員，崛起於 1980 年代。「自由具象」藝術家們顛覆 了「極簡主義」、「觀念主義」等代表的高尚品味，以扭曲粗獷的筆觸、 漫畫嘲諷式前衛風格，寫下當代美術史的重要史篇。對照 1970 年代末 至 1980 年代同一世代，瘋狂頹廢與酒神享樂的懷舊時空背景下，大西 洋兩岸藝術家們對傳統、歷史、自由、性別等議題有更深切的探索，各 國興起以「新」為名的具象畫派的誕生。

在美國有擷取歷史的「新意象畫」（New Image Painting）或「壞畫」 （Bad Painting）的藝術家群：例如巴斯奇亞 Jean-Michel Basquiat、凱 斯．哈林 Keith Haring 的街頭地鐵塗鴉藝術；英國的「新繪畫」（New Painting）由克里斯多夫．勒．布倫 Christopher Le Brun 領銜；德國的 「新表現主義」（Neo-Expressionism）或「新野獸派」（Les Nouveaux Fauves），以巴塞利茲 Georg Baselitz、基弗 Anselm Kiefer、印門朵夫 Jörg Immendorff、潘可 A. R. Penck 為代表藝術家；義大利的「超前衛」 （Transavangurdia），所謂三 C 藝術家，齊亞 Sandro Chia、克雷蒙第 Francesco Clemente、古基 Enzo Cucchi 等人出色拔粹。這類延續「達 達主義」精神，被評論家們泛稱為所謂的「壞畫」品味，或者統整以德 國「新表現主義」泛稱，進而擴展歸類為「前衛藝術」，其影響力一直 延續至 21 世紀的此時此刻。

而以貢巴斯為首的法國的「自由具象」或稱「新自由具象」 （Nouvelle Figuration Libre），在這波前衛潮流裡熠熠發光。貢巴斯與 夥伴們的繪畫裡，不見強烈的政治傾向，純然盡情自由的繪畫。他們鍾 情於搖滾與龐克音樂，舉凡歷史英雄人物、非洲原生藝術，華麗阿拉伯 式普普藝術、暴力情色題材等始終感到興味盎然。如同畢卡索在 1960 年代也曾回歸古典藝術，貢巴斯等輩以再現經典懷舊、敘事性的繪畫革 新展現自我。

藝術評論家認為，貢巴斯的藝術，如同一座巨大熔爐，交會了歐亞 非傳統歷史、次文化流行音樂、以及地中海文化色彩，沒有階級意識， 純粹多元性與能量俱足的奇想世界。貢巴斯獨特繪畫風格的成形，與其 1960-1970 年童年及青少年時期成長於法國南方，有絕對必然的關聯。 他的繪畫裡經常回溯著神話、歷史、酒吧爵士樂、嘻哈、詩歌、銅管樂、 嘉年華服飾、黑色幽默、嘲諷漫畫、電影、街頭塗鴉等地方風土底蘊， 張力十足。