Alexandre NOLL (1890-1970)

Carved ebony monoxyl cross for hanging or standing Incised "ANoll" signature circa 1950 L : 19,5 cm Bibliography: Olivier Jean-Elie and Pierre Passebon, "Alexandre Noll", Editions du Regard, Paris, 1999, models reproduced on page 73. ALEXANDRE NOLL Alexandre Noll roughs pieces with a saw, then hollows, carves and gouges them. He uses sandpaper and buffer to polish them. Alexandre Noll multiplies effects, here revealing the bark, elsewhere polishing a surface. Form plays no small part in his research. The unusual rhythms and unexpected, surprising harmonies he prefers to uneven wood cuts with knots, wounds or a particular wood grain. The shapes of his objects, most often asymmetrical, irregular in thickness and surface, do not imitate nature, but rather suggest it, summarize it, synthesize it. "I don't kill wood, I obey it. I obediently follow its contours, its knots, the slightest accidents of its veins, to produce a work inspired by nature itself..." Alexandre Noll