Jean Miotte
Encyclopedia
Jean Miotte is a French abstract
painter
, in the style known as L'Art Informel. His work is preserved and studied at the Miotte Foundation.
Miotte came of artistic age in war-torn Europe in the decade after World War II
, when non-figurative, gestural abstraction was emerging on both sides of the Atlantic as the dominant language in contemporary art. Seeking what has been termed art autre, artists such as Shiraga Kasuo, Jean-Paul Riopelle
, Emil Shumacher, and Miotte championed the individual freedom of the artist as expressed through gestural brushstrokes and thick pools of color. As Miotte has commented, “My painting is a projection, a succession of acute moments where creation occurs in the midst of spiritual tension and as a result of inner conflicts.”
Miotte’s artistic influences include performance, choreography, jazz music, and particularly ballet
. In London in 1948 he did set design and saw the work of Balanchine, the Diaghilev Ballet, and Margot Fonteyn
. Being exposed to this variety of art was of profound inspiration to him; Miotte would experiment with gesture through painting and hone lyrical movement in his own art. Miotte’s lithe, inventive line echoes the living art of dance. Miotte experiments in media ranging from oil to acrylic, gouache, ink, etching, lithography, and collage. His use of black paint on a white or raw surface frequently recalls calligraphy; when color appears, it ranges from primaries to earthy tones. Critics say he is unique among the Informels because he continues to grow, fighting repetition, questioning himself and his form of expression. In the 1990s he began producing the canvases currently on display, the largest of his career.
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, in the style known as L'Art Informel. His work is preserved and studied at the Miotte Foundation.
Miotte came of artistic age in war-torn Europe in the decade after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, when non-figurative, gestural abstraction was emerging on both sides of the Atlantic as the dominant language in contemporary art. Seeking what has been termed art autre, artists such as Shiraga Kasuo, Jean-Paul Riopelle
Jean-Paul Riopelle
Jean-Paul Riopelle, was a painter and sculptor from Quebec, Canada.-Biography:Born in Montreal, he studied under Paul-Émile Borduas in the 1940s and was a member of Les Automatistes movement. He was one of the signers of the Refus global manifesto...
, Emil Shumacher, and Miotte championed the individual freedom of the artist as expressed through gestural brushstrokes and thick pools of color. As Miotte has commented, “My painting is a projection, a succession of acute moments where creation occurs in the midst of spiritual tension and as a result of inner conflicts.”
Miotte’s artistic influences include performance, choreography, jazz music, and particularly ballet
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
. In London in 1948 he did set design and saw the work of Balanchine, the Diaghilev Ballet, and Margot Fonteyn
Margot Fonteyn
Dame Margot Fonteyn de Arias, DBE , was an English ballerina of the 20th century. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest classical ballet dancers of all time...
. Being exposed to this variety of art was of profound inspiration to him; Miotte would experiment with gesture through painting and hone lyrical movement in his own art. Miotte’s lithe, inventive line echoes the living art of dance. Miotte experiments in media ranging from oil to acrylic, gouache, ink, etching, lithography, and collage. His use of black paint on a white or raw surface frequently recalls calligraphy; when color appears, it ranges from primaries to earthy tones. Critics say he is unique among the Informels because he continues to grow, fighting repetition, questioning himself and his form of expression. In the 1990s he began producing the canvases currently on display, the largest of his career.