Richard LAILLIER (b. 1961). Act 4, 1998. Black stone drawing - Lot 250

Richard LAILLIER (b. 1961). Act 4, 1998. Black stone drawing on cardboard, 15 x 24 cm. Signed, titled and dated in pencil on verso. Prix Sade 2012, documents category. "It starts with a big white space. The sheet of paper. Richard Laillier attacks this white with sandpaper, sanding it down, making it less smooth, more receptive. Then, with black stone, a kind of very dry, matte charcoal, reduced to powder, he blackens it. Using large circular gestures and a cloth, the black material cancels out the white of the paper. Total blackout. It's only in a third stage that Laillier uses an eraser to bring out the shapes and lines of the paper. He removes the black, digs in and returns to the white, which was always there, hidden. Richard Laillier, who lives and works in Paris, has been using this technique for decades, similar to that of dark matter in printmaking. The blacks are deep, the matter dense and voluptuous. Whites are nothing more than memories, taking on shades of gray, beige and smoke. http://galerie-audrey-marty.com/richard-laillier/