Shipwrecks
The theme of shipwreck, recurrent in Gilles Barbier’s work, conjures up drifts, rafts, swells and storms. It depicts the instability of the world as seen by the artist. This theme, revived at the end of 2023, opens a new chapter in the artist’s work. Inspired by Homer’s Odyssey, a voyage of initiation with no designated goal, the Shipwrecks series paints the disarray and wonder of an existential departure. It structures this narrative by setting out stages or trials, as many islets where thirsts, fears, songs, signs, shores, hallucinations and encounters are imagined… The archipelago that takes shape as this series progresses seems to reveal a space that is as much aesthetic as it is political.
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The title of Naufrages – Le Premier Chant (Shipwrecks – The First Song) refers to the lethal song of the Sirens, which is impossible to resist. Here, by way of reversal, it evokes the foretold end of the sea chanteys. Gilles Barbier shows a whale stranded on its back on the black sand, its belly swollen with an absurd psalmody in Lorem Ipsum.
The use of polyester and its transparency allows us to work on both sides of the pictorial surface. The various drawing and painting techniques (known as “wet” or “thin”) give rise to a number of processes: overlaps, withdrawals, revelations and scratches are all pictorial gestures that suggest the sedimentation of emotional strata, from burial to revelation, traversing the spectrum of disorders of which this series and other works are a part. particularly this work is the subject.
Catherine Pinatel
“Shipwrecks – They are gone” #1, 2023. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm
“Naufrages – They are gone” #1, 2023. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm
“Shipwrecks – They are gone” #2, 2023. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm
“Naufrages – They are gone” #2, 2023. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm
“Shipwrecks – The first song”, 2023. Acrylic, gouache and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 250 cm. Collection FRAC Sud, Cité de l’Art
“Shipwrecks – The first song. 2023. Acrylic, gouache and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 250 cm. Collection FRAC Sud, Cité de l’Art Contemporain.
“Shipwrecks – The second song”, 2024. Acrylic, gouache and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 500 cm.
Naufrages – The second song. Acrylic, gouache and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 500 cm – 2024
Shipwrecks – The second song (Detail). Acrylic, gouache and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 500 cm – 2024
Shipwrecks – The second song (Detail). Acrylic, gouache and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 500 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Falling stars” #1, 2024. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
Shipwrecks – Falling stars #1. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Falling stars” #2, 2024. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
Naufrages – Falling stars #2. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Falling stars” #3, 2024. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
Naufrages – Falling stars #3. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Foggy day”, 2024. Acrylic, gouache, spray paint and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
Shipwrecks – Foggy day. Acrylic, gouache, spray paint and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – The wind is rising”, 2024. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 250 cm.
Naufrages – The wind is rising. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 250 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Hallucination (rising rain)”, 2024. Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
Shipwrecks – Hallucination (rising rain). Acrylic and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Hallucination (I piss gold)”, 2024. Acrylic and gold leaf on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
“Shipwrecks – Hallucination (I piss gold)”, 2024. Acrylic and gold leaf on polyester. 170 x 152 cm
“Shipwrecks – Hallucination (Butterflies lose their colors)”, 2024. Acrylic, graphite and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 200 cm.
Shipwrecks – Hallucination (Butterflies lose their colors). Acrylic, graphite and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 200 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Hallucination (Butterflies lose their colors)”, detail.
Shipwrecks – Hallucination (Butterflies lose their colors) detail. Acrylic, graphite and Posca® on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – The skin comes off”, 2024. Acrylic, graphite and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 250 cm.
Naufrages – The skin comes off. Acrylic, graphite and Posca® on polyester. 152 x 250 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – An unexpected encounter”, 2024. Acrylic and gouache on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
Naufrages – An unexpected encounter. Acrylic and gouache on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
“Shipwrecks – Un voile devant les yeux” #3. 2024, Acrylic on polyester, 152 x 250 cm.
“Naufrages – Un voile devant les yeux” #3, 2024. Acrylic on polyester, 152 x 250 cm
“Shipwrecks – Un voile devant les yeux” #2, 2024. Acrylic and spray paint on polyester. 170 x 152 cm – 2024
Naufrages – Un voile devant les yeux #2, 2024. Acrylic and spray paint on polyester. 170 x 152 cm.
“Shipwrecks – Un voile devant les yeux” #1, 2024. Acrylic on polyester, 170 x 152 cm
“Naufrages – Un voile devant les yeux “#1, 2024. Acrylic on polyester. 170 x 152 cm
“Shipwrecks – Dream of sand”, 2024. Gouache on polyester. 152 x 250 cm.
Shipwrecks – Dream of sand. Gouache on polyester. 152 x 250 cm. 2024
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.
“Shipwrecks”, studio view.