INÉS LONGEVIAL

Van de Weghe is pleased to present, in cooperation with Ketabi Bourdet, Paris, En chair et en os (In the flesh), an exhibition recent self-portraits by Inès Longevial. This new body of work highlights the artist’s mastery of color and form as she strips away all ornamentation, in order to “to make the face speak.” She transforms the body to landscape, hills and valleys carved by light and crossed by shadows.

Longevial’s sensitivity finds its most delicate expression literally on the surface of the skin, that thin membrane between oneself and the world, which resonates with atmospheric information. The figures glow with reflected light; the pastel palette punctuated by incandescent hues evokes the diurnal cycle of light from sunrise to sunset. They console and soothe with their soft and warm pinks, mauves and yellows.

The works likewise probe the emotional depths of living in the world. Longevial’s compositions are closely cropped, almost cinematic, and evoke an essential drama. Each variation tenderly asserts itself with a soft, silent presence, seemingly in search of consolation. A modest tear appears on the figures’ cheeks, signifying a need for alliance, resolution, and comfort. The dreamy candor of inclined faces and lowered eyes beckon us back to our first years. Longevial uses composition, symmetry and seriality in a visual game that transforms the self-portrait into multitudes. They surround and mirror each other, one dissolving into the next, at once bearing down and then at a distance.