Cheetahs, leopards, dalmatians, giraffs, ladybugs and Claude Viallat's canvases are all surfaces covered with relatively regular forms dispersed unevenly across their surface. The size, form and density of these forms contribute to the distinctive and recognizable appearance of the individual amongst its species and enhances its interesting visual aspect.
Observe a herd of giraffes and the savannah or group of Viallat's works in Ceysson & Bénétière's art park. Who is the greater maker, mother Nature ou papa Viallat? The giraffe’s spots are intriguing, beautiful, indeed functional. Their irregularity camouflages the animal in the vegetation, their unique layout identifies the individual, and we discover that their dark color assists convection and thus thermal regulation. Eyecatching, and they move. Follow my gaze.
Look out, it's Viallat. Hung on the walls or placed on the floor, his works have never been kinetic. Nothing is natural in this creation. Life is in motion; but art transports us. Making the canvas work for him, he lets the picture form without any prodding. This unshakeable constancy is none other than the moral force he invokes to let the canvas be built without provoking it. This perseverance in its pictorial means makes it possible to transform chance events into plastic opportunities.
One might think that Viallat at 88 years old could rest on his craft. On the contrary, the experiences of the last ten years are always bolder. We know him shamelessly appropriating the most various supports: rug, handkerchief, umbrella, cloth, headrest, tent, curtain, parachute, flag. This textile eclecticism continues to be expressed in recent works. Constant, they remain free and without stretchers. But perseverance has no limits, and recent works break free of the rectangular format to push the frontier of the shaped canvas even further. Here an outsized umbrella is flattened and exploited as a hexagonal tondo. There a rectangular piece of canvas joined to one half of a parasol shameless ressembles a flappy pair of briefs.
Horror vaccui seems also overcome. More and more canvases are constructed in such a way as to reveal a hole in the middle of folded fabric. This void is often exploited for what might be considered humorous purposes. Take the work in which strips of jute are tied together to form a rectangle with a black crossbar bearing two loops connected by the hem of denim pants: he's really got it in for those who like to show off stretcher bars. Often now, the motif enjoys relative autonomy, even if the shapes interact with each other and with the support itself.
In a recent interview, Viallat summed up his work by saying: "Ultimately, I'm doing classical painting on a support that isn't classical. This constraint creates a space of freedom. Instead of an ideal canvas which tempts you to do a good job, i.e. to work commonplaces, I have a canvas that works for me." This is a way of saying how the notion of aesthetic experience is concerned with sensual perception and its relationship to the artist's affective state. For the viewer, it is perhaps the formalism of randomness that is so particular to Viallat, and so pleasing to us.
Rachel Stella
