Jeanne Richer

Painting is a natural follow-up to my drawing explorations, which I’ve been pursuing on a regular basis for several years. The mediums I use for drawing complement my acrylic work: in my paintings, you’ll find charcoal strokes, pastel points and ink traces… I like to stand on the border between painting and drawing: the two inspire and reinforce each other…

I also love painting still lifes in oils, inspired by everyday objects that I try to magnify in staged settings. I like the first gesture, without retouching, which lets us guess the energy that is released. For this reason, Alla prima painting suits my intention to capture the present moment, to work with rapid movement, to see the object in its entirety in order to capture with a few strokes the light of a unique moment.

In my paintings, I want to give the impression of a structured, coherent whole, but that as one approaches it, one can discover an “organized” chaos of spots and lines.

The titles, often playful, provide a context and setting for the work, allowing each viewer to create his or her own story and contribute to the finalization of the work.

After training as a Visual Arts teacher and then in Interior Design, I temporarily put certain artistic activities on the back burner to pursue a career in college and university teaching. I picked up my pencils and brushes again in the early 2000s and have since taken part in numerous solo and group exhibitions, as well as humanitarian events. A professional member of the RAAV (Regroupement des Artistes en Arts Visuels), I’m also an active member of an international group dedicated to life drawing: the SBLDC (Scottish Borders Life Drawing Club).