Thierry Lefort by Gilles Trichard - Beautiful in color
Beautiful in color by Gilles Trichard, 2023
Barely crossed the threshold of the workshop, my brain is euphoric. Unusual objects, bargain hunters' finds, Venetian mask, Buddhas, collection of colorful hats, red boxing gloves, sculptures, tubes of paint galore, flasks of oil, abundant canvases and this human skull along the bay window. “ For my development, it is important to know the anatomy of a human being well. Do you know that there is a bone in the middle called the sphenoid ”.
Curious about everything, insatiable, on the alert for a discovery, the artist surrounds himself with various books. The ground is strewn with it. Eugène Delacroix, Nicolas de Staël, collections of poems… He devours, phosphorus, drinks up ideas that will become creations . Feed his inspiration. One of his favorite books: How I See the World of Albert Einstein. “ And this world, how do you see it? ". “ What fascinates me is the relationship between space and time ”. “ But still? What's the use of asking him questions. Why explain everything? In this unusual setting, I prefer to let myself be overwhelmed by the emotion of a story. He seems to take things in life as they come. Adventure around the corner. A romantic life made up of chances that do things well. “ What do you want to paint? asks him one day the head of the Academy of Fine Arts in Saint Petersburg. I had to find a place outside as I moved around. " In a cab, escorted by a beautiful guide, I crossed the Russian countryside and, according to the inspiration of a place, I made the horses stop and I took out my easel".
Thierry Lefort does not let himself be intoxicated by success, he never tires of surprising himself. He comes to his workshop to surpass himself . If he does not feel the best disposition and he immediately returns home. “ I have to feel it, let it rise from the inside ”. Sometimes he accepts invitations but he loves nothing so much as this exciting face to face with himself in his lair. “ A daily struggle ”. He even happens to be of his opinion. Under the apparent lightness pierces a certain gravity. The artist removes his elegant anthracite black coat to which hangs a small Kokopelli, synonymous among the Amerindians with benevolence and sunshine. The rebellious lock, hands on hips, he crosses his space with amazed eyes.
He's a smooth-talking dandy. He wears a cross in his left ear, a few rings. Paint-spotted clothes, a delicately tied scarf, very chic shoes, this look sums it up well. Creativity in mastery. He looks amazed by what is happening to him. His face with childish features is that of a demanding dreamer with himself. Like when he decided to do a two-year retreat in China, to improve his skills in calligraphy as well as in martial arts. "Qigong is a technique for purifying the spinal cord, it's the same for artistic creation, you have to constantly look for the best in a constant simplification of the gesture". Facing his canvas, he draws on the breathing exercises learned at the Shaolin Temple. His gestures are precise and flexible for maximum line precision.
I touch the paintings posed, hung, stored. Cityscapes like I've never seen before. Between figuration and abstraction . The color overwhelms me. She is organized, playful, mysterious, indefinable. Overseas blue, clear, airy, dark blue that absorbs shadows. Temptation red, orange red, passion red, then calm. Green paradise, green freedom. Graduated yellow. “ The strength and harmony of colors is very complex. A single color is like a single musical note, I'm looking for chords. I use simple colors and mix things up ”. The phrasing is precise like his brushstrokes. The voice is soft. A humble way of saying things. “ Black and white is the queen and the king, all colors are the pawns ”. His palette consists of black and white with a dozen very simple colors. “Then come the forms, empty and full which will prepare the bed of color ”.
I understand why his master-classes are successful. It vibrates. Passion on edge. As a child, he already had this desire to share his creative emotions when he offered paintings on wood to his teachers to be forgiven for bad grades. " I was not bad in class, but like in the commercial for Guy Degrenne, I looked at the trees through the window ". Without the baccalaureate, he will not do the Beaux Arts, but in the meantime, he had his revelation when his uncle was storing his paintings at home. “ Seeing these landscapes of moors and forests was a trigger, but I knew it would be the urban landscapes ”. The body goes into action. Martial arts at the service of art.
Fluid gesture, arm tension, deft wrist movements, it looks so simple . “ As Matisse said, behind an apparent simplicity, it's very thoughtful. The subject, the decor are pretexts to produce ever more beauty ”. This work in progress pushes him to “take back” a painting that faces us. A perfectionist, this son of an artisan wants to add color and refine the shapes. “ My work is a constant questioning ”. He has also forbidden himself to have paintings of him at his home. " I go to buyers, friends, to see them and that allows me to have a critical distance "
Beautiful in color by Gilles Trichard, 2023