Discovering the Works of Louise Barbu

I was introduced to Louise Barbu (1931-2021) earlier this summer at the Centre d’Animation et des Congrès in Bagnoles de l’Orne in Normandy, where I unexpectedly encountered her retrospective, “La Joie S’Écrit,” displayed in the ground-floor exhibition room. This experience compelled me to visit her studio, where her son, the poet Théophile Barbu, graciously provided deeper insights into her work. Until that moment, Louise Barbu had been unfamiliar to me, but what immediately struck me about her art was its extraordinary originality.

While some elements in her abstract pieces faintly echoed the biomorphic styles of artists like Jean Arp, Joan Miró, Barbara Hepworth, and Henry Moore, it was her unique arrangement, subject matter, interplay of light, and distinctive color palette that captivated me. Her use of hues reminiscent of those found in the DNA palette—green for guanine, red for cytosine, and yellow for thymine, with the latter two blending into orange—stood out vividly against a contrasting black backdrop.

Barbu’s unconventional use of colors and what seemed to be a rebellious spirit compelled me to delve deeper into each painting. It was a journey into uncharted artistic territories that captivated me from the outset. Her mastery in applying paint to create three-dimensional effects and manipulate light was evident. Unlike classical painters who fixate on a single light source, Barbu’s technique reflected natural light as it traversed spaces or filtered through leaves and branches, imbuing each part with a spotlight effect, as if internally illuminated—a metaphorical journey into introspection.

Louise Barbu’s unique technique involves mixing paint on her palette in a paste-like manner, a precision reminiscent of pharmaceutical compounding inherited from her father, a pharmacist. This meticulous process grants her precise control over color, texture, and consistency, yielding a distinctive artistic effect that showcases her mastery of materials.

Beyond her artistry, Louise Barbu’s biography adds another layer of fascination. She began her artistic career later in life, at nearly 40 years old, as a mother of four, starting with simple collages of found leaves of all shapes and sizes and rapidly advancing through self-study.

“I like to include the humblest, the craziest, the most forgotten of plants.” – Louise Barbu.

Her talent gained recognition when she was featured in the group show “Grandes Femmes petits Formats, 99 femmes-artistes” alongside Shirley Goldfarb, Marcelle Cahn, Louise Nevelson, Nadia Léger, and Aurélie Nemours, organized by the avant-garde gallery owner Iris Clert in Paris in 1974. This marked the beginning of a remarkable journey that led to a solo exhibition titled “Voluptés vagabondes” and participation in an innovative Plexiglas truck art installation prominently displayed throughout Paris, as well as at international venues such as Galerie Kunst Raum in Cologne, where she collaborated on a live art installation with a dancer, and Maison Française in New York. Her encounter with Louise Bourgeois during an exhibition in New York left an indelible mark, owing to their shared complicity and esteem.

While Louise Bourgeois channeled familial struggles into her art, exploring themes of anxiety and betrayal, Louise Barbu embraced a more positive and nurturing perspective, infused with sensuality. Her works, often depicting floating cells inspired by her husband—a doctor and immunologist researcher—reflect this nuanced approach, blending scientific inspiration with artistic expression. Her focus on molecules particularly intrigued me due to the intersection between art and science. I have always been interested in understanding the precise causes of epilepsy and its potential cures, given that epilepsy can result from genetic mutations, brain injury, or neuroinfections such as meningitis or encephalitis.

Yet, despite her early acclaim, Barbu’s legacy seems somewhat overshadowed today—a mystery in the art world, perhaps due in part to the passing of Iris Clert in 1986, who passionately championed her work and connected her with collectors and critics. Iris Clert’s gallery was renowned for avant-garde artists like Yves Klein and Robert Rauschenberg, creating a platform where Barbu briefly shone before fading from mainstream recognition. However, critics and exhibition curators have continued to defend her oeuvre through personal exhibitions and retrospectives at institutions such as the Donation Mario Prassinos (Saint-Rémy de Provence), Center Noroit (Arras), Musée du Touquet, Musée de la Vallée de la Creuse, Château de Carrouges (Orne), and Chapelle des Calvairiennes (Mayenne).

Studio Visit

In her early work from the mid-1960s, Louise Barbu collected fragments of plants picked up along the roadside or in her garden. She used everything from leaves gnawed by slugs and climbing bindweed to rhubarb peels, creating intricate collages. This method marked the beginning of her journey, honoring what she found and appreciating what it is, showcasing her initial exploration of natural materials and her evolving artistic vision. Immersing herself in books on oil painting techniques, she began displaying these natural fragments on painted canvases in muted colors. In her works from 1971, as shown in image #2, one can see how she integrated these elements. Realizing that the leaves would wither, Barbu then transitioned to producing these fragments in paint, capturing their essence more permanently, as seen in trompe l’oeil in image #3. She continued with a series of ‘Equivoques’—fantastical plants illustrated in photo #8—before her work evolved into ‘Molécules non identifiées’ (Unidentifiable Molecules), and ‘Molécules impudiques’ (Molecules Lacking Modesty) in the early 1970s, as indicated in image #4. Here, the influence of her husband’s work in immunology becomes evident; molecules are fundamental to immunology.

After Iris Clert included the ‘Molécules impudiques’ (Molecules Lacking Modesty), in her 1974 show, Louise Barbu embarked on the ‘Moments cosmobiotiques’ (Cosmobiotic Moments) series, which ran from 1975 to 1977, followed by the ‘Sensualités’(Sensualities) series from 1977 to 1985. These titles often combine dual, somewhat whimsical words, such as ‘Rivage Sensuel’ (Sensual Shore), ‘Amont Sensuel’ (Sensual Upstream), ‘Sensualité torrentielle’ (Torrential Sensuality), ‘Hamada Sensuelle’ (Sensual Hamada), and ‘Sensualité Mentale’ (Mental Sensuality). This suggests that sensuality can be found in both landscapes and human forms.

During the visit, guests have the opportunity to explore a series of posters showcasing various gallery exhibits and books documenting Louise Barbu’s other series, such as ‘Instants d’imaginaire’ (Instant Imagination), ‘Tailleur d’Espaces’ (Space Tailor), and ‘Semeur d’Irréels’ (Sower of Unrealities). These paintings highlight her artistic evolution, including some of her latest works from the ‘Théâtre cosmique’ (Cosmic Theater) series, which features a style with fewer, more refined forms, reminiscent of her earlier plant compositions as exemplified in image #14. Additionally, there is a booklet featuring poems written by her son Théophile, inspired by the titles of her paintings, as well as a glimpse of her palette and brushes.

Additionally, Barbu created the Nocturnes series from 1984 to 1987, which prominently featured ‘Vol de Nuit’ (Night Flight), exhibited at Galerie Henri Bénézit in Paris. During this period, she transitioned from muted colors to bold hues, emphasizing strong contrasts, as seen in images #9 and #10.

What I find particularly interesting about the ‘Vol de Nuit’ painting is that its title coincides with that of a novel by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, published in 1931. The book tells the story of brave men who piloted night mail planes from Patagonia, Chile, and Paraguay to Argentina during the early days of commercial aviation. ‘Vol de Nuit’ is also the name of a perfume by the French luxury brand Guerlain, created in 1933—the same year Air France was launched. Both the book and the perfume evoke a sense of mystery, adventure, elegance, and risk-taking, themes that resonate with the painting’s own enigmatic and bold presentation.

Louise Barbu also began incorporating sketches of her paintings into her works, a practice that evolved into the ‘Dessin Géniteur’ (Progenitor Drawing) series as seen in image #15 and led her to join the Signes et Traces at the Salon Comparaisons, founded by the Italian painter and lettrist Riccardo Licata. This allowed viewers to perceive both the conceptual genesis and the realization within a single painting.

Furthermore, she introduced the ‘Carré Souple’ (Soft square), a tilted geometric form resembling a square that created a ‘painting within a painting’ effect. This form, sometimes depicted very small and inspired by the French television rating system, became a distinctive hallmark visible in many of her subsequent works, as seen in image #11. She also conceived ‘l’ADN Spatial’ (Spatial DNA) to explore volutes inspired by the biological information of DNA, juxtaposed against a black background that forms the backdrop for a cosmic theater, exemplified in image #12.

Art exhibits in the health resort Bagnoles de l’Orne and Beyond

When I later saw her posters displayed in the hotel at the thermal baths in Bagnoles de L’Orne, I was reminded of Ted Meyer, an artist and patient advocate based in Los Angeles. Meyer collaborates with hospitals, drawing on his personal experience as a hospitalized child who used art to alleviate his anxiety. He also highlights artists with chronic diseases and how they find solace through creativity. Given the increasing tensions in hospitals due to staff shortages and longer waiting times, I envisioned Louise Barbu’s work—created primarily in the health resort town of Bagnoles de L’Orne—similarly exhibited in busy hospitals, accompanied by harp music, to create a calming atmosphere in what are often stressful environments for patients, staff, and visitors.

Overall, my visit to the gallery and her studio was a delightful discovery, offering a profound glimpse into the world of an artist whose legacy truly deserves greater recognition.

Paris, August 28, 2024

For more information, please visit Louise Barbu’s website.

http://www.louisebarbu.fr/news.php

This is an image from Louise Barbu’s exhibition “La Joie S’Ecrit in Bagnoles de l’Orne in Normandy. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This image is from Louise Barbu’s exhibition “La Joie S’Écrit” in Bagnoles de l’Orne, Normandy. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This image is from Louise Barbu’s exhibition “La Joie S’Écrit” in Bagnoles de l’Orne, Normandy. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

Photo of poet poet Théophile Barbu. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

The entrance hall of Louise Barbu’s studio features images from her series Molécules Impudiques (Molecules Lacking Modesty) #4 (right) and her Sensualités (Sensualities) series, as mentioned in the text.
Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

Some of Louise Barbu’s very first works, as shown in #2 in the text. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This is image #3, titled Imag’in’air, mentioned in the text. It hangs on the right side of the entrance hall. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This image from her studio shows works #5 and #6 mentioned in the text. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This image shows ‘Vol de Nuit’, which hangs on the left side of the entrance hall, just before the end of the hall. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This image shows #8 mentioned in my text. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This image shows #9 mentioned in the text. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This photo shows Image #12 mentioned in my text. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

Another image of poet Théophile Barbu, during the studio tour as he shows and explains the works of his mother Louise Barbu. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This photo shows, her painting ‘Dessin Géniteur’ (Progenitor Drawing), referred to in my text as #15. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE

This photo shows her palette. Photo credit: Simone Suzanne Kussatz / ARETE