At the end of this first experience in Le Bocal*, the artist Catherine Franck gives us her last
painting "Honey Child" and confides her impressions.
 

 

1. Tell us about your experience in Le Bocal...

It was a real challenge. I had to find my bearings, get out of my walls, share my hesitations, my doubts, my reversals, under the gaze that lingers, that observes the progress of the canvas every day. At the beginning, I could feel this gaze very clearly as a constant, almost invasive presence, but over time, a feeling of comfort, of oblivion, took over and allowed me to refocus on the gesture, the form, the inspiration.

 

2. The gaze occupies an important place in your approach, what role did being observed while creating play?

I have often said that my subjects offer a reflexive look, we observe them as much as they observe us. Seeing and being seen has an essential symbolism for me. And when Eric Landau told me about the Bocal, the idea immediately appealed to me. I knew that my artistic approach would make sense there. Working in full view of everyone allowed me to sublimate the circular game of looks between spectactor, artist and artwork.

 

3. You were the first to embark on this adventure, what did it mean to you?

 

A mutual pledge of trust, between artist and gallery owner, without which I would never have felt at home.

 

4. What is your best memory of this experience?

The sharing, the incessant exchange with people of all ages, cultures, backgrounds, which is - after this long period of isolation - our greatest wealth.

 

*Born from the desire to share this exceptional moment when the artist, in front of the white canvas, creates a work of art, Le Bocal is a showcase space imagined as a laboratory, an open studio, an incubator where inspiration takes shape and the creative process is revealed, from the first sketch to the final work, from the first brushstroke to the last layer of lacquer.