ART & INVESTMENT

南法地中海多元文化的養成

羅伯．貢巴斯，1957 年 5 月 25 日出生於法國大三大城─里 昂（Lyon），這座東南方城市曾是歐洲的絲綢之都，也是法國 盧米埃電影誕生地。四歲時，隨父母遷居至更南方的港都─塞特 （Sète），成長於此，因而，第二故鄉塞特，反而與貢巴斯的關係 更加緊密。塞特，號稱是「南法的威尼斯」，或是「小威尼斯」， 因鄰近地中海，成為歐洲知名的度假中心，到處可見海鮮美食、 音樂、戲劇，由於運河交錯，水上運動在此蓬勃發展。法國文學 作家保羅．梵樂希（Paul Valéry），以及創辦「亞維儂藝術節」 的劇場導演尚維拉（Jean Vilar），都是塞特人。2022 年，小城塞 特將競選為「法國文化之都」（La Capital Culturelle）的榮譽， 藝術家貢巴斯也被推舉為城市之光，表彰其藝術貢獻及成就。

「我的作品來自於隨意塗鴉，而非美術學校所學。」 貢巴 斯在其自傳如此說道。早慧的貢巴斯，兩歲起即懂得畫戰役圖 （battle），顯露不凡的漫畫天賦。在父母的有意安排下，九歲時 曾進入當地美術學校預作準備。由於父親是一名工人，母親有時擔 任清潔婦，養育六個小孩食指浩繁，家境並不寬裕。少年貢巴斯 一直到 17 歲時（1974 年）才進入學校，在塞特的美術預科（Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Sète）學習一年。1975 年遷居，考入蒙佩利爾 美術學校（l'École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Montpellier）， 為期五年（1975-1979）的美術技能教育。1979 年獲得聖艾蒂安 美術文憑（École des Beaux-Arts in Saint-Étienne）。聖艾蒂安博 物館的館長（Musées de Saint-Étienne et du Musée national d'art modern），藝術史學者貝爾納．賽頌（Bernard Ceysson），當時 擔任評審委員，發現了貢巴斯的創意與才華，邀請他參與博物館 的展覽。

以星象特質，貢巴斯擁有雙子座的走在前頭、勇者無懼的性 格，預視了後來的開創格局。1977 年學院時期因喜愛搖滾龐克及 漫畫，和凱蒂（Ketty Brindel）、迪羅沙兄弟（Hervé & Buddy Di Rosa）等好友組成樂團，不久後凱蒂變成女友，樂團成員還發行 《BATO》（Bateau, 法文「船」的簡稱，1978-1980 年間發行） 100 本限量手抄本雜誌，共同渡過青春搖滾的歲月。前期在校主修 版畫與油畫，無意間發現了本．沃捷 Ben Vautier 的文字藝術，啟 發了後來貢巴斯興起發展「自由具象」的念頭，將文字入畫。「自 由具象」（Figuration Libre）一詞，也是本傑明．沃捷最早所提出。

貢巴斯早期繪製大量的素描手稿，內容多來自電視、卡通和 暴力戰爭，也曾嘗試在牛皮紙上創作風景畫，可惜多數作品早已 散佚。由於畫材料昂貴，窮學生無力負擔，只能用紙箱、桌子、門、 床單等素材作畫，甚至拿同學丟棄的筆記本當作畫紙，完成第一 幅米老鼠的畫作。甚或，直接在雜誌內頁上再繪畫，種種天馬行 空的繪畫經歷，成就他後來發光發熱的養分。 超級畫商李歐．卡斯特里的加持

1980 年貢巴斯在蒙佩利爾的埃哈塔畫廊（Galerie Errata）舉辦生 平首次個展。後來陪同女友凱蒂到巴黎參加電影《雷克斯樂團》（La Bande du Rex）演出，見識到萬花筒世界般的巴黎，而選擇要落腳巴 黎。從南方城市過渡到天龍國巴黎，他成為異鄉人，南方人的特質，很 快融入並創作出無國界的繪畫風格。1980 年代是他施展藝術潛力的年 代，很快地 1981 年分別受邀前往德國杜塞道夫和荷蘭阿姆斯特丹參加 畫展，1982 年甚至到美國紐約展出。成立多時的「自由具象」團體， 1982 年才首度以團名正式舉行聯合畫展。

人生的里程碑在 1983 年有所成就，此時貢巴斯的作品漸漸受到藏 家們的喜愛。畫風趨向飽滿，結構複雜、寓意深奧，樹立起個人獨特的 魅力。二十世紀打造無數 A 咖明星藝術家的超級大畫商李歐．卡斯特 里（Leo Castelli, 1907-1999），分別在 1983、1986 年邀請貢巴斯在其 紐約畫廊舉行個展。1984 年 12 月與參加前文提過的法國國立當代美術 館的「自由具象 5/5：法國 / 美國」聯展，五位美國塗鴉藝術家巴斯奇亞、 凱斯．哈林、肯尼．沙夫（Kenny Scharf）、曾廣智（Tseng Kwong Chi），以及五位法國自由具體成員貢巴斯、狄羅沙（H Di Rosa）、布 朗夏（R Blanchard）、玻斯宏（Boisrond）、詹姆斯（James）一同參 與展出。

貢巴斯也曾應邀參加 1987 年巴黎龐畢度中心聯展。隨後還有來自 亞洲的邀請，如 1989 年韓國首爾的個展、1991 年台北市立美術館專題 展。此外，貢巴斯重要的博物館展出，有 2006 年大皇宮國家畫廊展覽； 2012 年里昂當代藝術館（Musée d'Art Contemporain in Lyon）大型回 顧展；2016 年摩納哥格里馬爾迪館（Grimaldi Forum in Monaco）個展 等等。

▲ 法國國立當代美術館的「自由具象 5/5：法國 / 美國」聯展（畫冊封面） The catalogue cover of Figuration Libre, 5/5, France/USA》, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, 1984

◀ 創作時的貢巴斯，約1993年 Courtesy of Atelier Robert Combas ▶ 羅伯．貢巴斯《太陽王》1987 壓克力 印花布 218 x 134 cm 羅芙奧2017春拍 台幣 6,480,000 成交 Robert Combas, Le Roi Soleil, 1987, Acrylic on printed fabric, 218 x 134 cm, Ravenel 2017 Spring Auction, USD 215,282 sold

經歷過幾位伯樂的慧眼推薦，如前文所述的已故大畫商李歐．卡斯 特里，1982 年開始合作的伊馮．蘭伯特（Yvon Lambert）；以及 1997 年合作至今的勞倫．斯特羅克（Laurent Strouk），還有比利時知名畫 商居伊．皮耶特（Guy Pieters）等。在藝術家生涯的四十多年間，已經 舉辦過數十次個人畫展。貢巴斯的作品珍藏於巴黎龐畢度中心、巴黎 卡地亞藝術基金會、荷蘭阿姆斯特丹市立美術館、亞維儂的蘭伯特收藏 館、台南永都藝術館等。

「我的搖滾，我的繪畫。」以藝術譜寫人生旋律

貢巴斯曾說道：「我的畫是搖滾音樂，是對『感覺』的追逐。感覺 是節奏，它是叢林裡瘋狂的鼓手和巫毒教的舞蹈，滾石樂團翻唱了黑人 藍調歌手們的老歌，無意間創作了新音樂。對我而言，繪畫亦然，感覺 到中國書法、阿拉伯文，還有地中海彩繪廣告的韻律。」

貢巴斯的創作歷程，依照時間序列可分為幾階段：其一為 19771983 年的「藝術學院與巴黎最初時期」，粗糙的筆觸，懷舊的塗鴉， 喜愛英雄與卡通主題，創造出三角形人、米老鼠和殺戮相關題材，南法 文化大熔爐式的無國界繪畫語言，其自由具象風格即源於此時。

其二，1984-1988 年，「特殊風格的成熟與實現」。豐沛的色彩組 成，不留白，粗黑的輪廓線描邊。1984 年搬遷至新畫室，風格更顯自信。 貢巴斯開始在色彩邊緣添加黑色輪廓框線，發展出個人的標誌語彙。 1985 年參觀羅浮宮後，致力研究傳統美術史主題。1986 年在衣物布料 上繪畫，為其一大特色。羅芙奧先前拍賣過的貢巴斯油畫作品《太陽王》 （Le Roi Soleil）即是繪於印花布料上。

其三，1988-1994 年間「文學精神時期」，來自教堂、聖像與彩繪 玻璃的靈感，也閱讀文學、歷史與哲學等，以黑色為主調，探索潛意識 的神祕風格，自認為研究的高峰期。1989 年開始出現滴流（drip）風格， 神秘的線條或圓圈交織，占據大面積的畫面。對於煉金術、古典繪畫產 濃厚興趣。羅芙奧 2021 年春拍薈萃國際專場的拍品《波斯傳奇》，波 斯風華麗深奧寓意的創作，即為此階段作品。

其四，1994-2000 年，「進化時期」。經歷過多階段的風格演變， 轉而從未完成作品、草圖的重新繪製，並嘗試三 D 立體作品，音樂與 詩歌文本上的創作。 其五，千禧年與後來。嘗試在攝影作品上註解與塗鴉，重製舊作。 如安迪沃荷等絲網印刷上的再創作等。

其六，2006 年的「學院紋身」。十多年前貢巴斯就曾用他的線 條，在不知名的學院生舊作上以線條描繪。隨著大眾刺青文化的再度 流行，運用於創作，高彩度螢光，拼貼色彩與光線，結合多媒體，賦 予藝術新意。

進入 21 世紀後，貢巴斯創作媒材更為多元。如 2006 年嘗試中世 紀主題的大尺寸畫作，回歸他喜愛的古典巴洛克主題。而後更以攝影 創作。曾經離開巴黎後，2010 年回歸巴黎藝術圈，結識音樂家盧卡斯． 曼西歐尼 Lucas Mancione 共同合作，完成 40 首音樂作品與錄影帶。 後期的色彩運用不似年輕時的火氣，轉為輕盈柔和。

異國情調前衛塗鴉 行情值得更高估值

上天賦予的才華，直觀的創作，加上記憶與細膩的觀察體驗，無 窮想像力發掘出創作的靈感。貢巴斯的個性坦率，用繪畫書寫日記， 他的藝術也反映出當代的精神。青春歲月裡，1970 年代在第二故鄉塞 特，有許多的酒吧和樂團，當時他愛穿著黑色皮衣，打扮花俏、毛皮 外套、紅髮龐克捲髮、偏好暴力、愛抽菸，自認為是風流的花花公子。 他的南方歲月多姿多采。到了巴黎之後，走訪瑪黑區、以及第十八區， 和塞特有種似曾相識之感。他假裝成阿拉伯人、或打扮成黑人靈魂樂 手、如同龐克英雄人物。

當年因漫畫與搖滾樂的共同興趣交往多年的學生情人，隨著兩 人發展不同調，終於在 1987 年宣告分道揚鑣。同年在畫商伊馮．蘭 伯特（Yvon Lambert）安排的派對上認識了舞者吉娜維芙．波特伊亞 （Geneviève Boteilla），終生的繆斯女神與伴侶，也是他眾多數作 品中的模特兒。情愛、慾望在貢巴斯的藝術裡佔有極大的份量。貢巴 斯一生至少有四位情人出現在他的繪畫裡─凱蒂 Ketty（1977-1987 年）、梅特 Maïté（1987 年）、蘇菲 Sophie（1995-2002 年）、不離 不棄的吉娜維芙（1987 年至今），陪伴著不同階段的生命階段且共同 創作。法國藝術家對情感的態度比較放浪不羈，無所保留，畢卡索的 情人們，不也是成就了他的藝術大業。

「對我來說，一幅畫可能會受到的影響，原始非洲的廣告公 司，或小學課本一張插畫，或一連串的畢卡索或米羅的影響，或 再者受到漫畫，假造的阿拉伯文字，原生繪畫，非常杜布菲式或 眼鏡蛇畫派的影響。如同小說家朱爾．凡爾納，無須離開我的房 間半步，我已到過非洲廷巴克圖。」羅伯．貢巴斯說道。

貢巴斯從學校畢業後，即成為職業藝術家，當然也少不了 他熱愛的搖滾樂。長期在歐洲或美國都有不少收藏家，亞洲如 台灣、韓國也有不少藏家收藏過他的畫作。2017 年羅芙奧春拍 的一幅《太陽王》油畫，648 萬台幣（US$214,488）成交，一 度寫下藝術家全球最高拍賣紀錄。這幅畫的原藏家和新買家皆是 台灣藏家，當時參與電話競拍者也有來自海外的客戶。這項紀 錄讓歐洲藝術市場驚喜連連，Artprice 更以專文〈藝術市場認可 羅伯．貢巴斯為法國重要在世藝術家之一〉（Artprice: The Art Market Confirms Robert Combas as One of France's Major Living Artists）介紹這則消息。隨後 2018 年、2019 年接連四度改寫紀錄， 目前貢巴斯的最新紀錄是在 2019 年 12 月巴黎拍賣會一幅 1986 年作品《寵物大遊行》（A Pet Hit Parade），創下的 35 萬 3445 美元或 31 萬 9000 歐元（約一千萬台幣）成績。

如果說畫風類比於畢卡索的美國畫家喬治．康多（George Condo, 1957 年生），可以在近期的藝術市場叱吒風雲，2020 年 在香港拍賣會上寫下 686 萬美元（5315 萬港元）的天價紀錄。同 齡的羅伯．貢巴斯，天份與才氣不在其下，際遇卻大不相同。皆 為新表現主義風格的德國畫家巴塞利茲，近期也在拍賣市場創造 912 萬美元的高價紀錄；而當年互有影響的紐約塗鴉藝術家凱斯． 哈林，最高拍賣紀錄也有達到 650 萬美元的行情。

隨著法國藝術大師們落後補漲行情，例如「藝術與投 資」專欄先後推薦過的：堅持具象的超級藝術家貝爾納．畢費 （Bernard Buffet）、抒情抽象之父藝術的喬治．馬修（Georges Mathieu）。而個人風格極強，創作豐沛的「自由具象」塗鴉大師 羅伯．貢巴斯畫作，期待未來在國際拍賣市場有很大的想像空間。

A French master of multiple art forms, Robert Combas has worked as a painter, cartoonist, sculptor, rock musician and composer, vigorously investing his energies in each of these interdisciplinary roles. It is not the maddest but the baddest. With a youthful head of curls, Combas speaks in quick succession, firing words like a machine gun. When he gets excited, there is rarely a moment of pause or silence, as his body sways like a hyperactive child with wildly gesturing hands. Just like him, his paintings are gloriously colorful, bold and explicit. His canvas is often filled with colorful block patterns and lines, and the images are often highlighted with black and white wireframes. Cleverly embedded into the picture, the Combas signature is also surrounded by layers of wireframe outlines, sharing his emotions enthusiastically with viewers.

In December 1984, emerging American graffiti painter Keith Haring participated in the Figuration Libre, 5/5, France/USA exhibition held at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.

A few months later, whether by accident or coincidence, Haring also began to paint strange characters similar to those by Combas. Perhaps they had been inspired by and influenced each other.

Leader of the Figuration Libre in France in the 1980's

Although he was born in elegant France, the exuberant personality of Combas is closer to the peppery style of British American Punk. He once said: "I don't love French chanson. I

listen to British or American rock n' roll and punk music." In the 1970's, his painting style was called "Fun Painting" in a disparaging tone. Only after 1981 did his artistic style gain wide acceptance after his predecessor Benjamin Vautier (born in 1935, Ben Vautier for short) gave it the name, "Figuration Libre". His art is filled with a humanized quality. Whether he is creating visual art or musical composition, he consistently invests whole-heartedly to the extreme - the most erotic, darkest, wildest and even violent - creating of emotion and perception.

Combas is the main founder of the French Figuration Libre movement that flourished in the 1980's. His good friend Di Rosa was also a member. Figuration Libre artists subverted the noble status of Minimalism and Conceptualism, and created an important chapter in the history of contemporary art with twisted and rough

brushworks as well as avant-garde satirical cartoons. Compared to those of the same generation from the late 1970s to the 1980s who indulged in crazy decadence and Bacchus pleasure, the artists on both sides of the Atlantic began in-depth explorations of tradition, history, freedom and gender issues, giving birth to the Figuration Libre and other emerging styles beginning with the name "New" in various countries.

In the U.S., there was a group of artists who captured history with New Image Painting or Bad Painting, such as the street or metro graffiti of Jean-Michel Basquiat or Keith Haring. In England, there was a New Painting style led by Christopher Le Brun. In Germany, there was the Neo-Expressionism style or the Les Nouveaux Fauves represented by Georg Baselitz, Anselm Kiefer, Jörg Immendorff, and A. R. Penck. For the Italian Transavangurdia style, outstanding representative artists include the so-called three C artists, Sandro Chia, Francesco Clemente, and Enzo Cucchi. As a continuation of Dadaism, these new styles were generally referred to by critics as the "bad paintings", or collectively known as the German name "Neo-expressionism". The style expanded to become part of the classification of the "avant-garde art", which has continued its influence to the current moment in the 21st century.

Headed by Combas, the French Figuration Libre or Nouvelle Figuration Libre stood out in this avant-garde trend. In the paintings by Combas and his fellow artists, strong political tendency was absent as they favored pure and free-style paintings. They also loved rock and punk music, and had a strong interest in historical heroic figures, native African art, magnificent Arabic pop art, and themes with violence and eroticism. Just as Picasso also returned to classical art in the 1960s, Combas and friends also presented themselves with reproductions of classical nostalgic and narrative innovation in painting.

Art critics believe that the art of Combas is like a giant melting pot that blended traditional history in Europe, Asia and Africa, subcultural pop music, and Mediterranean culture to create an amalgamation of diversified and energetic whimsical world without class consciousness. The formulation of the unique painting style of Combas is absolutely related to his childhood and adolescence spent in southern France from the 1960s to the 1970s. His paintings often contained local and dramatic culture and customs, including mythology, history, jazz bar, hip-hop, poetry, brass music, carnival costumes, black humor, satirical cartoons, films, and street graffiti.

Cultivation of Mediterranean Multiculturalism in Southern France

Robert Combas was born on May 25, 1957 in Lyon, the third largest city in South Eastern France that was once the silk capital of Europe and the birthplace of films invented by the Lumiere Brothers. At the age of four, Combas moved with his parents to the port city of Sète further south and grew up there. Thus Combas had a closer relationship with Sète, his second hometown. Sète is also known as the "Venice of Southern France", or "Little Venice", which became a well-known holiday destination in Europe due to its proximity to the Mediterranean Sea. Seafood, music and theatre are available everywhere in the city, and water sports have flourished here due to its network of canals. French literary writer Paul Valéry, and Festival d'Avignon founder/theatre director Jean Vilar are both from Sète. In 2021, the little town of Sète was recognized as the La Capital Culturelle. Combas was also nominated as the light of the city, in recognition of his artistic contributions and accomplishments.

Combas wrote in his autobiography, "My work comes from scribbling rather than from what I learnt at art school". The precocious Combas began drawing pictures of battles at age two, demonstrating his extraordinary cartoon skills. His parents once arranged for him to enter a local art school as preparation for his future profession. However, as one of six children of a father that worked as a laborer and a mother who

sometimes worked as a cleaner, his family was far from well-off. As a result, Combas did not attend school until 1974 when he was 17 years old, when he studied for one year at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Sète.

Moving to a new location in 1975, he was admitted to the l'École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Montpellier for a five-year (1975-1979) training in art techniques. In 1979, he graduated from the École des Beaux-Arts in Saint-Étienne. Subsequently, Combas participated in an exhibition at the Musées de Saint-Étienne et du Musée national d'art

modern, because the curator of the museum and the exhibition juror, art history scholar Bernard Ceysson, had recognized the talent and creativity of Combas and extended an exhibition invitation.

Combas has the characteristics of a Gemini, his astrological sign, which walks fearlessly ahead of others. This also foretells his future in developing a new genre. When he was in school in 1977, Combas formed a band with good friends including Ketty Brindel and Hervé & Buddy Di Rosa brothers due to their love of rock and punk music and cartoons. Soon after, Ketty became his girlfriend. Also, band members released 100 limited-edition hand-made magazines BATO (short for Bateau, which means "Boat" in French, published between 1978-1980). That was how this group of young friends spent their rock n' roll years together. Combas majored in printmaking and oil painting in his early school years. He incidentally discovered the textual art of Ben Vautier, inspiring in him the idea to develop "Figuration Libre" by incorporating texts into his paintings. Benjamin Vautier was also the first person who proposed the term "Figuration Libre".

The drawings made drawn by Combas in the early years consisted mostly of the content of TV, cartoons, and violent wars. He also attempted to draw landscape sceneries on Kraft Paper though most of such works have disappeared. As a poor student who is hard to afford

◀ 羅伯．貢巴斯《音樂大歡樂POUM POUM》1982 壓克力 畫布 174 x 210 cm Robert Combas, Big Fun Musique Poum Poum, 1982, Acrylic on canvas, 174 x 210 cm ▶ 1987年的貢巴斯 Courtesy of Atelier Robert Combas ▼ 貢巴斯2018年巴黎斯特羅克畫廊個展《海上劇院》現場 View of Robert Combas' solo exhibition"Le théâtre de la Mer" at Strouk Gallery, Paris, 2018, Photo Courtesy of Gallery Strouk

▲ 羅伯．貢巴斯作品市場指數 Price index of Robert Combas © Artprice

expensive painting materials, he would paint on cardboard boxes, desks, tables or bedsheets. He even completed his first Mickey Mouse painting using a notebook discarded by a classmate. He would even draw directly on the inside pages of magazines – all of his unusual and creative painting experiences would soon become the nourishment for his blossoming career.

Support from Legendary Art Dealer Leo Castelli

In 1980, Combas held his very first solo exhibition at Galerie Errata in Montpellier. Later, he chose to move to Paris after accompanying his girlfriend Ketty Brindel in the filming of La Bande du Rex and experienced the wonder of Paris. Moving from Southern France to the upscale Paris, he became a foreigner, though the characteristics of a southerner quickly helped him to become assimilated as he created a borderless painting style.

The 1980s was the era when the artistic potential of Combas dazzled the world. Very quickly, he received invitations to participate in exhibitions held at Dusseldorf, Germany and Amsterdam, the Netherlands. He also went to New York, USA in 1982, when the longestablished Figuration Libre group participated in a joint painting exhibition in the name of the group.

Combas achieved a personal milestone in 1983 as his artworks became actively sought after by collectors. He had established his unique charm with a plump painting style, complex structure, and profound significance. Legendary art dealer Leo Castelli (1907-1999), who had sparked the careers of countless A-list artists, invited Combas to hold solo exhibitions at his New York gallery in 1983 and 1986.

In December 1984, as mentioned above, Combas participated in the Figuration Libre, 5/5, France/USA exhibition held at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, along with five graffiti artists from the U.S., including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Crash (John Matos), Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf and Tseng Kwong Chi, as well as four other Figuration Libre artists from France, including Hervé Di Rosa, Rémi Blanchard, François Boisrond and Louis Jammes.

Combas was also invited to participate in a joint exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris in 1987. Subsequently, he received invitations from Asia, and held his solo exhibition in Seoul, Korea in 1989, as well as a special exhibition at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum in 1991. Furthermore, Combas has had several significant exhibitions at various museums, such as the exhibition at the Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais in 2006, a major retrospective exhibition at the Musée d'Art Contemporain in Lyon in 2012 and a solo exhibition at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco in 2016.

Combas rose in fame after obtaining the recommendation of several major art collectors, including the late art dealer giant Leo Castelli, Yvon Lambert (his agent since 1982) and Laurent Strouk (his agent from 1997 to the present), as well as the famed Belgium art merchant Guy Pieters, etc. In his more than four decades of career as an artist, he has held several dozen solo exhibitions. His artworks have also become prized collections at various locations, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Fondation Cartier pour l'Art contemporain in Paris, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Collection Lambert in Avignon, and Yung Tu Museum of Art in Tainan.

"Mon Rock, c'est de la peinture. / My Rock is Painting!" Composing a Melody of Life with Art

Combas once said: "My painting is rock n' roll music, the search for Feeling. The Feeling is rhythm, it is the mad drummer in the jungle and voodoo dances, it is the Rolling Stones who imitated the old songs of black bluesmen and created a new music without knowing it. For me, it's the same with painting, feeling the rhythm of calligraphy on Chinese, Arabic, and Mediterranean painted advertisements."

The creative styles of Combas may be divided into several phases in time. The first phase from 1977 to 1983 was The Art Academy period, and the first years in Paris. His favorite works of heroes and cartoons were painted in a nostalgic graffiti style of rough brushstrokes, creating works featuring triangle people, Mickey Mouse, and massacres. A borderless painting language had emerged from the giant cultural melting pot of Southern France, becoming the origin of Figuration Libre.

The second phase from 1984 to 1988 was The Sophistication and the realization of Combas' specific style. Works of this period consisted of bountiful color compositions with thick black outlines without any whitespace. After moving to a new art studio in 1984, Combas grew confident of his style and began adding black outlines on the edge of colors, developing his personal trademark vocabulary. After a visit to the Louvre in 1985, he devoted himself to the study of traditional art history. Another of his major specialties was paintings on clothing in 1986. The oil painting Le Roi Soleil by Combas in a previous auction at the Ravenel was painted on print fabric.

▲ 貢巴斯2015年巴黎斯特羅克畫廊個展《在塞特的夏日記憶》現場 View of Robert Combas' solo exhibition"Un été a Sète et dans ma tête" at Strouk Gallery, Paris, 2015, Photo Courtesy of Gallery Strouk

The third phase from 1988 to 1994 was his Literal Spiritual Period, when his inspiration came from churches, icons and stained glass, as well as his literary, history and philosophy readings. With black as the main color tone, he considered this the peak of his research as he explored the mystical style of the subconscious. In 1989, he began to draw in the drip style, with mysterious and interweaving lines or circles occupying large areas of the canvas. He also became strongly interested in alchemy and classical paintings. The Persian Romances painting, a lot from the Ravenel 2021 spring auction SELECT session, featuring the splendor of a Persian style with mysterious references was painted during this period.

The fourth phase from 1994 to 2000 was the period of Evolution. After going through several style transformations, he had changed from never finishing his works, to recreating his draft works. He also attempted creative works in three-dimensional forms, music composition, and poetry.

The fifth phase was the millennium and several years afterwards, when he tried photographic annotation, graffiti, and reproduction, such as screen printing recreations of the works of Andy Warhol.

The sixth phase was The Academic Tattoos of 2006. More than a decade ago, Combas had drawn lines on the old works of unknown academy students. As the tattoo culture regained popularity, Combas began to apply the style in his works with high chroma fluorescent collage of colors and light, integrating a multitude of art forms to imbue new ideas into art.

In the 21st century, Combas adopted even more media into his artworks. For example, he attempted large-scale paintings with medieval themes in 2006, returning to his favorite classical Baroque style. In addition to photography, he also completed 40 works of music and videos after returning to Paris in 2010, after meeting and collaborating with musician Lucas Mancione. His works of the later period featured gentle and soft colors, instead of the fiery colors used in his youth.

Exotic Avant-Garde Graffiti Works Deserve Much Higher Valuation

With innate talents, intuitive creativity, delicate observation and memories, the boundless imagination of Combas generated a vast number of works. Combas has a straightforward personality. He painted in his diary, and his art has reflected the spirit of the contemporary era. In his youth, at his second hometown of Sète in the 1970s, he frequented bars and hung out with bands. At the time, he dressed in fancy outfits, black leather and fur coats, while sporting a head of punk style red curls. His life in Southern France was quite colorful, as he preferred violence and smoking, and considered himself a lady's man. After moving to Paris, his visits to Marais and the 18th arrondissement reminded him of Sète. He

would disguise himself as an Arab, or an African soul musician, just like a punk hero.

For many years, he dated his student with whom he shared interests in comics and rock music. After the two began to drift, they finally separated in 1987. In the same year at a party hosted by an art dealer Yvon Lambert, he met dancer Geneviève Boteilla, who became his lifelong muse, partner, and one of the many models in his works. Love and passion have always had a significant presence in Combas' art.

At least four lovers have been featured in his paintings, including Ketty (1977-1987), Maïté (1987), Sophie (1995-2002), and the persistent Geneviève (1987 to present). They have accompanied him in different stages of life and became partners in his creative works. French artists seem to have an unrestrained attitude about romance. After all, Picasso's lovers also helped him achieve a level of artistic magnificence.

"For me, a canvas can be influenced by naïve African advertising agents, by an illustration in a primary schoolbook, by a dash of Picasso or Miró, or again by drawings like comics, plus phony Arabic script, raw painting, very Dubuffet or Cobra. Like Jules Verne, without leaving my room, I've been to Timbuktu.'' － Robert Combas

After graduating from the academy, Combas became a professional artist, and continued with his love for rock n' roll. For a long time, his works have been popular with numerous collectors in Europe and the U.S., as well as collectors in Taiwan and South Korea in the Asia region. In 2017, his oil painting Le Roi Soleil sold for NT$6.48 million (US$214,488) at Ravenel Spring auction, setting the highest auction price for his works in the world at the time. Both the original collector and the new buyer were Taiwanese. There were also overseas bidders who participated in the auction over the phone.

◀ 貢巴斯2013年巴黎斯特羅克畫廊個展《色彩第一》現場 View of Robert Combas' solo exhibition"La couleur c'est au 1er" at Strouk Gallery, Paris, 2013, Photo Courtesy of Gallery Strouk ▶ 2015年貢巴斯《畫筆的賦格》個展海報 Post of exhibition "La fougue du pinceau, 2015"

This record delivered quite a surprise to the European art market. Artprice also responded with a special article introducing the news (Artprice: The Art Market Confirms Robert Combas as One of France's Major Living Artists). Combas also set the record four times subsequently in 2018 and 2019. The latest Combas auction record was US$353,445 or 319,000 euros (about NT$10 million) for his 1986 painting titled A Pet Hit Parade sold at an auction in Paris in December 2019.

In contrast to other artists of the same generation and similar talents, the fortune of Robert Combas has not been the same. For example, American painter George Condo (born in 1957), whose style has been compared to Picasso, has dominated the art market recently. In 2020, Condo set an incredible high record of US$6.86 million (HK$53.15 million) at an auction in Hong Kong. German Neo Expressionist painter Baselitz also set a record of US$9.12 million at a recent auction. New York graffiti artist Keith Haring, who has inspired and been inspired by Combas, also set a record as high as US$6.5 million.

As the valuation of French art masters gradually catch up in the market, there is a lot of room for imagination in the international auction market of the future, especially for the following artists recommended by Art and Investment columns: Bernard Buffet, the super artist who insisted on the art of Expressionism, Georges Mathieu, the father of lyrical abstract art, as well as Robert Combas, the Figuration Libre graffiti master with an intense individual style of abundant paintings.

羅伯．貢巴斯作品二十大拍賣成交排行

1

寵物大遊行 A pet hit parade 1986 Acrylic on canvas 227.5 x 180.5 cm

2

犧牲 Hécatombe 1992 Acrylic on canvas 213.5 x 297 cm

3 4

佐佐之戰 La bagarre à Zozo 1986 Acrylic on canvas 130 x 262 cm 攻佔巴士底獄 La Prise de la Bastille c.1989 Acrylic on canvas 205 x 250 cm

5

太陽王 Le Roi Soleil 1987 Acrylic on printed fabric 218 x 134 cm

預估價 Estimate €70,000~90,000

成交價 Sold at US$353,445 €319,000

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎艾德 Artcurial Paris Dec 04, 2019

6

過橋就行了 Il suffit de passer le pont Acrylic on canvas 211 x 257 cm 預估價 Estimate €90,000~150,000

成交價 Sold at US$303,743 €269,400

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎科奈特．德．聖許荷拍賣 Cornette de Saint Cyr Paris Apr 09, 2019

7

叢林及其神秘 La jungle et ses mystérieux 1985 Acrylic on canvas 210 x 201.5 cm 預估價 Estimate €70,000~90,000

成交價 Sold at US$220,338 €188,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎艾德 Artcurial Paris Jun 04, 2018

8

五條腿的狗 Le chien à cinq pattes 1987 Acrylic on canvas 202 x 269 cm 預估價 Estimate €50,000~70,000

成交價 Sold at US$219,170 €187,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎蒂埃里． 德斯貝尼特拍賣 Thierry Desbenoit Paris Jun 04, 2018

9

受刑者馬車 La charrette des Condamnés c.1979 Acrylic on canvas 205 x 250 cm 預估價 Estimate TW$3,400,000~5,500,000

成交價 Sold at US$214,488 TW$6,480,000

拍賣日期 Auction Date 台北羅芙奧 Ravenel Taipei Jun 03, 2017

10

阿曼多人魚 Armando l'homme sirène 1986 Acrylic on canvas 199.5 x 247 cm

預估價 Estimate €100,000~150,000

成交價 Sold at US$212,413 €187,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎蘇富比 Sotheby's Paris Mar 19, 2019 預估價 Estimate €100,000~150,000

成交價 Sold at US$211,840 €187,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎蘇富比 Sotheby's Paris Jun 06, 2019 預估價 Estimate €50,000~70,000

成交價 Sold at US$190,526 €162,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎艾德 Artcurial Paris Jun 05, 2018 預估價 Estimate €50,000~70,000

成交價 Sold at US$189,947 €162,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎蒂埃里． 德斯貝尼特拍賣 Thierry Desbenoit Paris Jun 04, 2018 預估價 Estimate €60,000~80,000

成交價 Sold at US$187,248 €169,000

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎艾德 Artcurial Paris Dec 04, 2019

TOP 20 MOST EXPENSIVE PAINTINGS OF ROBERT COMBAS EVER SOLD AT AUCTION

TOP 20

製表 ／ 吳彣薇 Vivian Wu （Update 2021.05.12; Source: Artprice.com, Artcurial, Cornette de Saint Cyr, Thierry Desbenoit, Ravenel, Sotheby's, Digard Auction, Versailles Encheres）

11

12 13 14 15

吉普賽女郎愛上軍官 La gitane amoureuse d'un certain godillot 1988 Acrylic on canvas 266.5 x 159.5 cm 騎士之戰 Bataille chevaleresque 2003 Acrylic on canvas 213 x 338 cm 瑪莉亞大街上 的四個絨毛玩具 Les 4 peluches de l'Ave Maria 1987 Acrylic on canvas 200 x 243 cm 馬恩河馬車 Les taxis de la Marne 1988 Acrylic on canvas 209 x 214 cm 拿破崙 Noléon 1987 Acrylic on canvas 211.5 x 124 cm

預估價 Estimate €130,000~180,000

成交價 Sold at US$184,529 €162,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎艾德 Artcurial Paris Dec 03, 2018

16

路易十四 Louis xiv 1985 Acrylic on canvas 218 x 165 cm 預估價 Estimate €120,000~180,000

成交價 Sold at US$181,209 €162,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎科奈特．德． 聖許荷拍賣 Cornette de Saint Cyr Paris Oct 22, 2019

17

晚安先生女士們 Bonchoir mechieu, fauchoir mesdames 1984 Acrylic on canvas 205 x 196 cm 預估價 Estimate €35,000~45,000

成交價 Sold at US$176,516 €132,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎科奈特．德． 聖許荷拍賣 Cornette de Saint Cyr Paris Apr 04, 2012

18

犧牲 Hécatombe 1992 Acrylic on canvas 214 x 295 cm 預估價 Estimate €120,000~180,000

成交價 Sold at US$173,000 €156,000

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎艾德 Artcurial Paris Dec 03, 2019

19

鋼琴家 Le Pianiste 1987 Acrylic on canvas 162 x 129.5 cm 預估價 Estimate €80,000~120,000

成交價 Sold at US$169,575 €143,750

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎蘇富比 Sotheby's Paris Dec 06, 2017

20

保拉利茲．德德． 巴比利塞的樂隊 La bande à Paularizé Dédé Babilisse 2014 Mixed media on canvas 235 x 180 cm

預估價 Estimate €80,000~120,000

成交價 Sold at US$166,621 €130,000

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎科奈特．德． 聖許荷拍賣 Cornette de Saint Cyr Paris Mar 28, 2013 預估價 Estimate €40,000~60,000

成交價 Sold at US$165,410 €140,400

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎Digard拍賣 Digard Auction Paris Oct 21, 2017 預估價 Estimate €100,000~120,000

成交價 Sold at US$162,050 €111,528

拍賣日期 Auction Date 凡爾賽拍賣 Versailles Encheres Paris Jul 03, 2011 預估價 Estimate £40,000~60,000

成交價 Sold at US$156,272 £118,750

拍賣日期 Auction Date 倫敦蘇富比 Sotheby's London Mar 06, 2019 預估價 Estimate €50,000~70,000

成交價 Sold at US$155,348 €137,500

拍賣日期 Auction Date 巴黎蘇富比 Sotheby's Paris Jun 06, 2019

HOW TO ENJOY WHISKY? STRAIGHT UP, ON THE ROCKS, OR MIZUWARI?

Text、Photo / 唐維怡 Eva Tang

週四晚上十點多，好友 T 突然打來， 說是她再也不跟 Y 一起去酒吧了。 「你知道嗎 ? 她竟然當著大家的面說我不懂喝威士忌T 激動的在話筒的另一端叨念著。 !」 「妳做了什麼 ?」把手機拿遠了些，我問。 「Bartender 問我要怎麼喝的時候，我說加冰塊 ! 加冰塊不行嗎 ? 就她純飲高尚 ! 快幫我評評理 !」 威士忌確實有著各式各樣的喝法，孰優孰劣， 且讓我們一起來評評理。

享受純粹的原味

純飲，顧名思義就是單純飲用。

威士忌源自於天候寒冷的蘇格蘭與愛爾蘭，當地人喝酒極少加 冰塊，因此直接喝，最能感受到酒廠想要帶給消費者的風味。

不過即便是純飲，也會因為溫度的不同，有著不一樣的表現：

最簡單的純飲便是依著室溫，直接將威士忌從酒瓶中倒入杯中 享用，這個方法我們稱之為「Neat」。

如果想要稍微降低一些溫度，也可以選擇所謂的「Straight Up」，也就是將酒加入冰塊攪拌後，再濾掉冰塊的喝法，稍稍降低 的溫度會讓酒精的刺激感隨之降低。

還有一種方式，稱之為凍飲「Frozen」，和近年來流行的高粱凍 飲一般。將威士忌整瓶放入冰凍庫中，由於酒精凝固點遠低於水， 酒液的稜角被低溫修飾，口感變得滑順而濃稠。當冰涼的酒液順著口 腔流入喉間，由於溫度的升高，酒精伴隨著香氣會以一種燃盡一生 的火熱方式一股腦兒綻放於胸口，帶來與直接純飲全然不同的體驗。

既然知道了降溫可以柔化入口時的刺激感，加冰塊當然也會有相 同的效果。唯獨一般飲料我們會選擇加小顆冰塊，喝威士忌的時候， 卻通常會選擇大顆的冰塊，減緩冰塊融化的速度，則既可在前半段 享受到降溫後純飲的直爽，也可以在中後段冰塊開始融化時享受到 稍加稀釋的柔順，這種喝法我們稱之為「On the Rocks」。

加冰塊 村上春樹式的琥珀色小漩渦

實際上關於如何加冰塊、加怎麼樣的冰塊，也是有著許多學問的。 文學界中與威士忌有著緊密關係的村上春樹，曾用一段文字描述了「On the Rocks」的奧妙：「光是冰塊的分配方法這一點，就足以影響 On the Rocks 的品味和味道。大塊的冰和小塊的冰融化情況不相同。如果 只使用大塊冰，硬梆梆地不美觀；但是反過來小塊冰太多的話，又會 馬上變得淡而無味。必須將大中小的冰塊巧妙搭配，然後才將威士忌 注入。這樣威士忌才能夠流暢地在玻璃杯裡畫出琥珀色的小漩渦。只不 過，要到達這種境界必須耗費相當長的歲月⋯⋯。」

可以冰凍喝、可以加冰喝，當然也可以加水來喝。

加水飲用會降低酒精濃度，讓口感不那麼嗆辣，同時又能包覆住酒 精，讓香氣得以釋放，許多國際烈酒大賽的評審也都曾分享他們會在杯 中加入數滴的水，讓一款威士忌能在最短的時間內完全綻放。

而談到加水喝，最有名的就是日本人獨特的「水割 (Mizuwari)」喝 法。水割的出現源自於日本口感偏清淡的飲食文化，為了能夠佐餐，他 們會在杯中加入比單純品飲威士忌時更多的水，大幅降低酒精濃度，也 讓口感更為溫和，搭餐時便不會奪去了食材的風采。 就跟加什麼冰一樣，有些人認為一份的威士忌加上兩分的水是最 恰當的水割，但不同地區、不同酒吧對於水該加多少有著不同的見解， 1:2.5、1:3 都是常見的比例。

既然可以加一般的水，當然也可以加帶著氣泡的氣泡水。在杯中裝 滿冰塊，加入威士忌後再加滿蘇打水這種喝法我們稱之為「Highball」。 將這種喝法發揚光大的，和水割一樣也是日本人，事實上，這種喝法受 到全世界的喜愛，成了酒吧中最基本的調酒品項之一。

是了，加冰也好、加水也好、純飲也好，怎麼喝沒有孰優孰劣之分，只 要你覺得好喝，就是最好的喝法 !

「我就說威士忌可以加冰塊喝嘛 !!!」T 驕傲地說。

加水喝 不僅僅是稀釋那麼簡單 怎麼喝 ? 自己開心最重要

我笑了笑，闔上手上的《1Q84》，挑瓶威士忌，調了杯 Highball，為 今夜的自己點綴以一抹微醺。