Michèle Didier
General Sector
Booth B11
94 Richard Lenoir Blvd.
75011 Paris
France
Presentation of the gallery
michèle didier, founded in 1987 in Brussels, produces and publishes original artworks by contemporary artists.
In 2011, michèle didier opened a gallery in Paris. The gallery represents artists of different generations, related to the editions produced by the publishing house, but also develops specific projects with particular invitations. Since its creation, the gallery has given priority to collaborations with artists working in a conceptual vein, in particular international artists who are now considered historic. The Paris gallery also supports the development of artists from the French scene.
Presentation of the artist in focus
JOSH SMITH
Set of 50 designs.
Signed and dated 2005 by the artist on the back of the sheet.
Size: 20.3 x 12.3 cm.
Graphite pencil drawing on paper.
These 50 drawings belong to the series entitled "Faces", made in 2005 and which contains a total of 672 drawings.
Josh Smith said of this series, "These quick drawings were made in 2005. I like to draw quickly, without thinking or looking, and then look at the result when the drawing is finished. The drawings are so simple that there is no reason to correct any defects that appear. Drawing them was cathartic and I continue to draw faces all the time. Not deliberately, but differently. I would recommend the drawing to anyone. It's impossible to go wrong, so there's no stress." Josh Smith's work is distinguished by his perfect mastery of several techniques such as drawing, painting, collage, engraving and ceramics. His most emblematic works are works
whose sole subject is its own name. In recent years, the name has given way to motifs such as leaves, fish, skeletons, insects or sunsets. By choosing these subjects, which are quite ordinary, and by representing them in a way that is by turns violent, playful or sarcastic, Josh Smith forces us to go beyond aesthetics and to focus on this repetition of the subject, of the motif, which treated in this way, exhausts it and leads it to its doom.
