April 02 - May 31, 1997
FRANCESCO CLEMENTE
THE PAINTINGS OF THE GATE
galerie jerome de noirmont

exhibition release

    Francesco Clemente is considered as one of the most important contemporary artists.

    He frequently publishes books in collaboration with poets like Allen Ginsberg, Gregory Corso, Robert Creeley, John Wieners, René Ricard and Andrei Voznesensky among others.

    His work reflects the crossbreeding of italian, indian and north-american cultures, to which Francesco Clemente belongs all together.

    The knowledge of classical painting -artist raised in Italy- and of present creation -artist living in New York, capital of contemporary art-, the taste for philosophy -beloved subject of his adolescence-, the incentive to meditation -that the indian culture brings to him-, give to Francesco Clemente´s work an incredible visual force, that invites us to share the pleasures of his life.

    In the serial "The Paintings of the Gate", the artist proposes us opening double "gates" and lets us choose to open one only or both flaps.

    These "gates" illustrate the two facets of Francesco Clemente´s personality, the spiritual one -mind and spirit- and the physical one -sex-.

    The representational look of the "physical" flap painted in oil contrastes with the almost abstract look of the "spiritual" flap treated in spray, technique which gives to the image a new vanishing appearance, thus increasing again the mysticism and the invitation to meditation contained in these works.

    The spray is an innovation in Francesco Clemente´s work, who already perfectly masters all classical techniques of painting and drawing, like oil, pastel, watercolour and gouache.