拍品專文
"Some of the Beards…look like gravel runs and have that geological feeling inherent in so much of Dubuffet’s work. Some resemble great rock formations or age-old boulders predating man’s presence on this planet. Or they appear to be survivors of ancient barbaric- that is to say, bearded- civilizations. Their shapes recall the menhirs of Stonehenge and the Winged Bulls from Assyrian palaces. (P. Selz, The Work of Jean Dubuffet, New York, 1962, page 149).
As is characteristic of Jean Dubuffet’s Barbe series executed in Vence throughout 1959, the subject of Tempête de Barbe is anonymous and plays a secondary role to the larger than life beard that fills the majority of the picture plane. This figure does not have any limbs – no arms or legs and his shoulders are barely visible – he is defined by the impressive and all-encompassing presence of his beard. With its coloration, treatment of the figure and medium Tempête de Barbe is an excellent example of Dubuffet’s work from this pivotal period of experimentation and exploration.
Recalling Dubuffet's fascination and early interest with the art of the primitive, Tempête de Barbe evokes the aesthetic tradition first explored in his early development of Art Brut. The coarse edges of the collaged paper and the immediacy of the composition demonstrate Dubuffet’s radical examination of traditional notions of “high art” and portraiture in both aspects of composition and medium. Throughout the 1950s Dubuffet experimented with his working method by incorporating sand into paint and testing the effect of sand on lithographic plates. With its tactile surface this collage invites the viewer to appreciate Dubuffet’s dynamic perspective on shaping the human form. With just a few basic shapes and tonal variations, eyes, nose and mouth emerge from an abstracted composition resulting in a sophisticated whimsical representation.
As is characteristic of Jean Dubuffet’s Barbe series executed in Vence throughout 1959, the subject of Tempête de Barbe is anonymous and plays a secondary role to the larger than life beard that fills the majority of the picture plane. This figure does not have any limbs – no arms or legs and his shoulders are barely visible – he is defined by the impressive and all-encompassing presence of his beard. With its coloration, treatment of the figure and medium Tempête de Barbe is an excellent example of Dubuffet’s work from this pivotal period of experimentation and exploration.
Recalling Dubuffet's fascination and early interest with the art of the primitive, Tempête de Barbe evokes the aesthetic tradition first explored in his early development of Art Brut. The coarse edges of the collaged paper and the immediacy of the composition demonstrate Dubuffet’s radical examination of traditional notions of “high art” and portraiture in both aspects of composition and medium. Throughout the 1950s Dubuffet experimented with his working method by incorporating sand into paint and testing the effect of sand on lithographic plates. With its tactile surface this collage invites the viewer to appreciate Dubuffet’s dynamic perspective on shaping the human form. With just a few basic shapes and tonal variations, eyes, nose and mouth emerge from an abstracted composition resulting in a sophisticated whimsical representation.