Simon Hantaï - Panses 1964-1965

In 1960, Simon Hantaï introduced the "method" of folding. Four years later, these canvases appeared – still little or poorly known today – which reflect the need for the artist to return to the embryonic, the cellular, to the cosmic sausage of Henri Michaux and a refusal to find a solution. preconceived forms.

The canvas is tied at the four corners, in a shapeless bag, before being painted and folded several times, then stretched. The shapes obtained float in an unpainted space. It is through this sequence that many young artists will then become more and more interested in the work of Hantaï who will become an essential figure. "

" The series started in 1964, Maman! Maman!, dits: La Saucisse refers to a quote from Henri Michaux. Made up of multiple folds of the same ovoid shape, referring to the original cell, it comprises twenty-six large canvases, later called Panses, as well as many smaller works." Source: Archives Simon Hantaï.

50 pictures

Published on the occasion of the exhibition presented by the Jean Fournier gallery (Paris VII), (2012).