Frédéric Poincelet — Apocalypse — Catherine Putman Gallery — Exhibition — Slash Paris

Past: February 8 → March 22, 2014

Frédéric Poincelet, Sans titre, 0 Stylo à bille et encre de couleur sur papier — 32,50 × 50 cm

With his drawings and cartoons Frédéric Poincelet presents drawing as an art form unto itself. He works exclusively with ballpoint pens and in this exhibition we will be witnessing his first time use of color. On paper prepared with ink wash Frédéric Poincelet defines the space with precise vertical and horizontal lines between which he depicts desolate landscapes and/or figures of carefree children in end-of-the-world settings.

Frédéric Poincelet, Sans titre, 2013 Stylo à bille et encre de couleur sur papier — 50 × 65 cm

“The lethal radiation has already completed its sinister task and only a few survivors remain, all condemned to certain demise. Some of them wander away from their homes seeking unlikely refuge elsewhere. The song of birds has become a not so distant memory. Some children, still unaware, continue playing while their parents gather random belongings in resolute despair. Only remnants of past sceneries remain. We see a shoreside hut off in the distance only barely recognizable having been leveled by the blast of a nuclear reaction. We find ourselves with Frédéric Poincelet, although only fictionally speaking (thank God!), to be the last witnesses of a world struck by an apocalyptic disaster. (Remember: apocalypse also means revelation).

Frédéric Poincelet, Apocalypse, 2013 Stylo à bille et encre de couleur sur papier — 50 × 65 cm

After all, these are Frédéric Poincelet’s last drawings, drawings that take us back to 1959, the year of the release of the Stanley Cramer film, On The Beach, in which a similar story is told about a handful of survivors only a few days after the nuclear holocaust that’s come about as the result of World War 3.

Frédéric Poincelet, Apocalypse, 2013 Stylo à bille et encre de couleur sur papier — 50 × 65 cm

The Last Judgment and Armageddon are recurring themes in the history of art. The Aztecs, apparently more concerned than other civilisations, performed human sacrifices in offering to the Sun God in hopes the Sun would reappear. In a more serene and peaceful way Poincelet decided he would exorcize the world of these apocalyptic demons. He did this by relegating to paper scenes of devastation and despair not imbued without a certain poetic manner of venom and decadence. With his characteristic rigor and near mathematical precision the artist offers more color laden drawings than he used to. These colors are of the faded variety, like the colors seen on old 16 mm film — in keeping with the cinematic imagery. The overall presentation of his work is rather panoramic. Oddly enough, the framework of his starker sceneries (landscapes, staircased interiors, and ocean views) bring to mind the abstract, conceptual, and slightly maniacal drawings of Sol Lewit.

Frédéric Poincelet, Sans titre, 2013 Stylo à bille et encre de couleur sur papier — Stylo à bille et encre de couleur sur papier

This collection of drawings by Frédéric Poincelet is also reminiscent of the poetry of fright of Eugène Guillevic."