143 - Gibrat

Gibrat JEAN-PIERRE GIBRAT Winter in Summer, Daniel Maghen 2019 The Exodus, an original illustration created in 2015 and which is, to date, the largest work created by the artist. Signed. Acrylic inks and watercolor on paper 102 × 66 cm (40.16 × 25.98 in.) The initial idea was to tell a story about the exodus—France falling apart, those millions of people finding themselves on the roads without knowing where they’re going, cities emptying out in a steady stream… In the end, I never actually wrote that screenplay, but that’s not entirely true—a drawing is also a story… In this kind of grand scene, it’s a patchwork of lives, invented to make them even more real. The musical instruments on the van in the foreground just seemed to demand their place—as unusual and intriguing objects. So I thought to myself, here’s a little couple who must have run a small music school in a neighboring department. It’s easy to believe what we invent; the same goes for every character—all the way to the horizon, they’re all lugging around their little bundles of life, and everyone can imagine them… Jeanne and Cécile—what are they thinking about? Cécile seems more desperate than her sister; she must have her reasons… Every object piled up is a small sample of the peaceful life they’re leaving behind… In fact, with this drawing, the story is written—but, as was customary at the time, in a haphazard order. Jean-Pierre Gibrat