The Atlas of the Observer. Exhibition of the works of Francois Bachelot (France)

The exhibition presents more than 40 works by the French artist Francois Bachlo, made in the technique of "digital painting".

Who is he, Francois Bachelot - an atypical artist who came to painting in his declining years? He himself, perhaps, will answer this question negatively, preferring to use the concept of “honnête homme” (literally “decent person”) of France of the 18th-19th centuries, that is, a professional, in this case a doctor who is interested in various types of art and is engaged in some of them. A person who participates in the state, trade union and economic life of society, being the Secretary General of the Permanent Assembly of the Chambers of Free Professions. A man who participates in scientific life by creating the French Private Society of Oncology, where he became the first Secretary General. And finally, a person who participates in political life, sitting as a deputy in the French Parliament. As a typical “honnête homme” of the French type, he drifted under sail, plowed the seas, traveled the world. He watched, took notes.

This cursory review of our guest’s many-sided personality is necessary in order to determine the guiding thread of his works that are presented to us for review. In his profession as an oncologist and radiologist, he often resorted to visual art at the beginning of his work, when he redrawn the anatomy of the human body, especially during his daily practice, in order to explain to his patients the origin of their ailments and therapeutic agents, which he will use. He was recognized as a good artist, which at that time was expressed in the portraits of relatives belonging to his brush. No less interesting are the female portraits created by François Bachlo during this period.

Subsequently, one event radically changed his career - “Big Hunt” in Africa, in which he took part in the 1970-1980s. The elephant became his constant companion. For more than 30 years, he has been collecting information and creating an impressive collection of works on this subject.

It was then that his creative career as an author and illustrator of three “elegant books” began: “Elephants of the ARMY, from Semiramis to the Khmer Rouge…..” (Publishing House “L’Harmattan”, 2004. 45 full-page illustrations made with a dry needle); “SUBMISSIONS OF ELEPHANES, from bola to hypodermic syringe” (Publishing House “L’Harmattan”, 2011; 52 full-page scanned black and white illustrations); "ELEPHANT. HUMAN IMAGINATION, from Niyama to the elephant of the Bastille ”(Edition“ L’Harmattan ”, 2018, 63 full-page scanned color illustrations).

The amazing dynamic reproduction of some illustrations, in contrast to the static images, encouraged them to be further developed outside the book… Why not try to enlarge such a scene to the size of the mural? In this way, F. Bashlo switched from an image with a dry needle to a pixel image - the so-called “digital painting”, from A4 paper to a canvas with an area of more than 5 square meters. Of course, to print a digitized element on a tangible medium requires the participation of a competent specialist who is able to accurately reproduce the colors and the continuity of the structure of the model, to which the artist resorts.

These paintings, these “digital canvases” can be classified in a large family of decorative interior, even exterior art using media that is resistant to adverse weather conditions. Their role is to decorate the spaces of public buildings in order to make them more alive, which is usually lacking in everyday spaces. The “digital panel” should shock, attract eyes, first appear as a strange multi-colored spot, spreading across the wall. The study of the "digital canvas", the abundance of details and their realism interrupts the daily life of the viewer or detaches him from momentary worries.

In the Paris region, the artist-oncologist organized a permanent exhibition, operating since the spring of 2018. He invited only his relatives and friends to his first semi-public speech with about fifty works on the theme “Africa and Asia meet in Soloni”. At the invitation of the President of the Russian Academy of Arts Zurab Tsereteli, Moscow actually became the first city where Francois Bashlo was accepted into a large family of artists.