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LUCIEN CLERGUE
LA LUMIÈRE TRANSCRITE
Lucien Clergue and Picasso, 1969
LUCIEN CLERGUE
LA LUMIÈRE TRANSCRITE
198 Davenport Rd, Toronto ON M5R 1J2 Canada I
Attraction
oil
on
canvas,
48 x 48 [email protected]
416.962.0438 or 800.551.2465
odonwagnergallery.com
LA LUMIÈRE TRANSCRITE
Le mot Photographie, écriture avec la lumière, a été inscrit pour la première fois en 1834, dans les carnets
de note d’Hercule Florence, un français expatrié au Brésil, n’en déplaise aux historiens qui attribuent le
mot à l’anglais Hershel. Comme Niepce, Daguerre ou Fox Talbot, il cherchait lui aussi le moyen de fixer
une image sur une surface sensible. Son isolement a fait que ses recherches sont restées oubliées bien
longtemps.
Lucien Clergue naît tout juste un siècle après dans Arles, une petite ville du sud de la France. Destin tracé
pour un enfant que la mère voulait artiste en lui faisant enseigner le violon, destin tracé pour un adolescent
myope qui allait regarder le monde comme nul autre, destin tracé enfin pour le jeune homme qui allait oser
soumettre ses premières photographies au regard acéré de Pablo Picasso.
Le jeune Lucien Clergue a été particulièrement marqué par la seconde guerre mondiale durant laquelle sa
maison a été détruite comme toute une partie de sa ville, et par une maman malade à laquelle il a prodigué
des soins durant toute son adolescence. On trouve ici le point de départ d’une démarche que d’aucuns
qualifient de morbide alors qu’il ne s’agit que de montrer un autre état de vie et de devenir.
C’est à l’âge de 14 ans que Lucien Clergue reçoit en cadeau d’anniversaire un appareil photo de sa maman.
Elle n’imagine pas alors que son fils puisse devenir artiste autrement que par les vibrations des cordes de
son violon. Pourtant Lucien Clergue trouve avec la photo un moyen d’écrire, voire de composer. Patiemment
il expérimente, il torture les films, se forge une technique que rapidement, il ne recommande à personne
car elle va à l’inverse de ce qui est écrit dans les livres. La mort dans ses images côtoie l’éphémère, la fierté
gitanes exulte la tristesse des saltimbanques mis en scène à l’adresse de Picasso. Ce premier véritable
corpus intitulée “La grande récréation” puise ses fondements dans des peintures telles que “La Grande
parade” de Fernand Leger, “Les Arlequins” de Pablo Picasso ou encore dans l’aspect figé des personnages
d’André Marchand. On y voit représentée une enfance désenchantée dans des photographies sans ombres
où chacun des personnages cherche à trouver un équilibre à travers un autre.
La mort, le drame, omniprésents, se manifestent, lui donne des armes pour convaincre. Les séries “la
ville aux ruines”, “le marais d’Arles”, “les charognes” en témoignent. Il erre, il avance vers un destin dont
il ne connait ni le chemin, ni les contours mais avec un acharnement et une audace qui lui valent l’estime
immédiate de Pablo Picasso et de Jean Cocteau. La confiance et le soutien affirmé de ces deux figures
de proue artistique des années 50 lui donnent des ailes. Il ose, comme un exorcisme, modeler dans la
lumière le corps de la femme. Il remet la mort à sa place, la laisse dans les tombeaux creusés dans le roc
de Montmajour et fait face à la vie. “Clergue fût sans doute le seul témoin de la naissance d’Aphrodite,
qu’on se le dise” s’exclame Jean Cocteau. Les nus apparaissent comme un sursaut, comme un espoir de
revanche après une adolescence empreinte de tristesse. Lorsque le poète montre à Picasso les premiers
nus de la mer photographiés par Clergue, les membres et la tête coupée telles des statues antiques
drapées par la mer, leur offrant ainsi une intemporalité absolue, le peintre admiratif s’exclame : “On pourrait
signer Renoir” !
Et dès lors la lumière solaire s’imposera au photographe. Il se placera toujours face à elle, à des heures
où l’on enseigne qu’il ne faut pas utiliser son appareil photo, mais c’est cela qui offre à l’œuvre de Lucien
Clergue d’aller bien au-delà d’une simple opposition entre vie et mort. Il écrit une dramaturgie en image
tant par les thèmes qu’il décline depuis 60 ans que par la composition esthétique avec laquelle il inscrit sa
vision des choses sur la pellicule. En amenant ses amis gitans chez Picasso, il souligne le drame du maitre
loin de son Espagne natale. Drame aussi que celui du taureau dans l’arène dont Lucien Clergue va célébrer
le sacrifice en sacralisant l’instant de sa mort pour que nul n’en oublie la bravoure. Drame toujours dans
les surimpressions où les corps nus de nos femmes sont livrés aux personnages des peintres des XVIIIème
et XIXème siècles.
Lucien Clergue va donc utiliser la photographie comme moyen
d’expression tout en prenant son bâton de pèlerin pour en faire
une discipline artistique à part entière, seul moyen de voir ses
images – et celle des autres photographes – reconnues en tant
qu’œuvres d’art. C’est ainsi qu’il fait rentrer la photographie
dans les musées français (Arles 1965), dans l’enseignement
universitaire en 1979 par la soutenance d’une thèse de Doctorat
puis par la création de l’Ecole Nationale Supérieure de
Photographie d’Arles en 1982 et enfin, reconnaissance suprême
du parcours d’un homme par son élection à l’Académie des
Beaux-Arts en 2006, la photographie est placée désormais
à équivalence de la peinture, la sculpture, la musique et
l’architecture au sein de l’Institut de France.
Si la photographie subit aujourd’hui une grande mutation
grâce aux impressions numériques et à l’utilisation d’ordinateur,
Lucien Clergue sans rejeter ces évolutions a décidé de rester
dans le creuset originel de l’argentique. Tous les tirages sont
donc réalisés dans son laboratoire par lui-même ou sous son
contrôle. Seule exception les très grands formats qui sont tirés
selon ses indications dans un laboratoire spécialisé à Paris.
Lucien Clergue a cependant expérimenté différentes techniques
de tirage afin d’offrir à ses prises de vue le meilleur rendu
1
Picasso et les Colombes “La Californie”
possible. Ainsi dans les années 80, il tente l’aventure du tirage
Picasso’s
residence from 1955-61, Cannes
au charbon direct. Il s’agit d’un procédé de tirage élaboré par
1956, vintage silver gelatin print, 12 x 10 in.
Pierre Fresson au milieu du XXème siècle sur la base d’une
invention de Théodore-Henri Fresson à la fin du XIXème.
L’utilisation d’une poudre de charbon de bois permet d’interpréter le noir car les zones sombres de la
photographie prennent un effet pictural caractéristique, le hasard et l’aléatoire intervenant lorsque les
grains se déposent sur le papier. Cette technique offre une garantie de conservation remarquable. Le
procédé Fresson est transmis secrètement de père en fils.
Dans la même quête, Lucien Clergue a utilisé le procédé dit Platinum/Palladium. Breveté en 1875, il s’agit
d’utiliser des sels de platine et de Palladium qui sont beaucoup plus résistant que les sels argentiques
permettant une stabilité de conservation qui n’a pour limite que celle de son support. Les tirages platines
offrent en outre une gamme de tonalité beaucoup plus étendu que l’argentique. Sal Lopez qui a réalisé les
tirages de Lucien Clergue est le tireur le plus prisé avec cette technique.
A la faveur d’une semaine de repos en Suisse, Lucien Clergue ne vas avoir à sa portée qu’un petit appareil
photo polaroïd. C’est avec une véritable frénésie qu’il va se mettre à utiliser ce format de prise de vue et
créer des compositions avec des séries parfois de plusieurs dizaines d’images. Puis, en 1985 et 1987, la
société Polaroïd va lui offrir la possibilité de travailler avec une rare chambre 20 x 24. (Image 11, 12, 13).
La galerie Odon Wagner pour célébrer les 80 ans de Lucien Clergue a fait le choix de présenter une
sélection exceptionnelle de photographies issue de toutes ces techniques de tirage et pour ce qui concerne
l’argentique de ne proposer que des tirages “vintage” ou “first print” c’est-à-dire réalisé la même année
que le négatif original. Ce qui confère à cet ensemble une rareté absolue.
Jean-Francois Dreuilhe
Ph.D., Art Sciences, Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres, Arles, France, 2014
TRANSCRIBED LIGHT
The word “photography,” writing with light, first appeared in 1834 in the notes of Hercule Florence, a
French expatriate in Brazil. Some historians, however, claim that the term was coined by the Englishman
Hershel. Like Niepce, Daguerre and Fox Talbot, Florence was looking for a way to capture images on a
light-sensitive surface. Because of his isolation, his research long remained unknown.
Lucien Clergue was born exactly one century later in Arles, a small town in the south of France. His destiny
had been mapped out. It was the destiny of a boy whose mother had artistic aspirations for her son and
made him learn to play the violin. The destiny of a nearsighted adolescent who saw the world as no one
else before. And ultimately, the destiny of a young man who dared to show his first photographs to the
sharp-eyed Pablo Picasso.
Young Lucien was deeply affected by World War II. His home and an entire section of Arles were destroyed.
His mother’s illness also affected him, as he cared for her throughout his adolescence. These factors
caused him to embark on a new path that some describe as morbid. Yet, in reality, it was merely indicative
of another stage of life and development.
At the age of 14, Clergue’s mother gave him a camera for his birthday. She was convinced that the only way
her son could become an artist was through the vibrato of the strings of his violin. But Clergue discovered
in photography a medium for writing, and even composing. He patiently experimented, brutalizing the
camera’s film, and developed a technique that he was quick to discourage others from adopting since
it went counter to everything written in books. Death in his images exists alongside the ephemeral.
Gypsy pride revels in the sadness of Picasso’s acrobats. His first true body of work, entitled “La Grande
Récréation,” was inspired by such paintings as Fernand Léger’s “La Grande Parade,” and Pablo Picasso’s
“Les Arlequins.” It was also influenced by the static aspect of figures in works by André Marchand. Clergue
depicts a disenchanted childhood in shadowless photographs where each figure is seeking equilibrium
through another being.
Death and tragedy are omnipresent. They provide him with persuasive tools, as evidenced by the series
entitled “La Ville aux Ruines,” “Le Marais d’Arles,” and “Les Charognes.” He was searching, moving toward
a destiny whose twists and turns were unknown to him, but his determination and daring were such
that he quickly earned the esteem of Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau. The trust and strong support
of these two titans of the art world in the 1950s
gave him wings. As a sort of exorcism, he dared to
mold the female body in light. He put death back
in its place, relegating it to the tombs carved in the
rocky slope of Montmajour, and turned toward life.
“Make no mistake: Clergue was clearly the only one
who witnessed the birth of Aphrodite,” exclaimed
Cocteau. Nudes burst forth as if to convey a hope
of revenge for an adolescence marked by sadness.
When Cocteau showed Picasso the first sea nudes
photographed by Clergue, headless limbless torsos
draped by waves akin to ancient statues and
imbued with absolute timelessness, the admiring
painter proclaimed: “They could be Renoirs!”
(Arles, France, 2013) Odon and Lucien in the artist’s
studio curating Clergue’s first exhibition in Canada at
Odon Wager Contemporary in Toronto
From that point on, sunlight became essential to
Clergue. He would always position himself looking
toward it at times of the day when photography
students are taught never to use a camera. But that is precisely what allows Clergue’s work to transcend
the mere contrast between life and death. He writes a dramatic image-based narrative, both through
the themes that have held his interest for 60 years and the aesthetic composition he uses to inscribe his
vision of things onto film. When he took his Gypsy friends to see Picasso, it underscored the drama of the
master, far from his native Spain. The bull in the arena is another drama. Clergue celebrated its sacrifice by
sanctifying the moment of its death so that no one would forget the animal’s bravery. Still another drama
unfolds in the double exposures where the nude bodies of today’s women fuse with figures in the works
of 18th and 19th century painters.
Lucien Clergue used photography as a means of expression, but he also set out on a mission to make it
a full-fledged artistic discipline. That was the only way his images – and those of other photographers –
would be recognized as works of art. Owing to his efforts, photography entered France’s museums (Arles
1965). Photography became part of the university curriculum following his doctoral dissertation defence
in 1979 and the creation of the École Nationale Supérieure de Photographie in Arles in 1982. The ultimate
recognition of the man and his career came in 2006 with his election to the Académie des Beaux-Arts.
As a result, photography is now on equal footing with painting, sculpture, music and architecture at the
Institut de France.
Today, photography is undergoing major transformations brought about by digital printing and computers.
Although he does not reject these changes, Clergue has decided to remain true to silver gelatin
photography. All prints are made in his laboratory, either by him personally or under his supervision. The
only exceptions are works in very large formats, which are printed according to his specifications in a
specialized laboratory in Paris. Clergue has nonetheless experimented with various print techniques in
order to get the best possible results out of his shots.
In the 80s, he tried his hand at the direct carbon print process developed by Pierre Fresson in the mid 20th
century. The technique was based on a late 19th-century invention by Théodore-Henri Fresson. Variations
of black can be created by using charcoal powder since the photograph’s dark areas take on a distinctive
pictorial quality as chance and randomness come into play when the powder is applied to the paper.
Prints made using this process are assured of remarkable conservation potential. The Fresson process was
passed down secretly from father to son.
As part of the same quest, Clergue has worked with the process known as platinum/palladium. It was
patented in 1875 and involves using platinum and palladium salts, which are much more resistant than
silver salts. The resulting prints are extremely stable and their length of conservation is only limited by the
material on which they are printed. Platinum prints also have a far more extensive tonality range than silver
prints. Sal Lopez, who did the prints for Clergue, is the most sought-after platinum printer.
The only camera Clergue had at his disposal during a week-long vacation in Switzerland was a small
Polaroid. He used the shoot format frantically to create compositions for series, some of which comprise
scores of images. Then, in 1985 and 1987, the Polaroid Corporation provided him with an opportunity to
work with a rare 20 x 24 camera. (Image 11, 12, 13).
In celebration of Lucien Clergue’s 80th birthday, Odon Wagner Contemporary is presenting a unique
selection of photographs originating from all these print techniques. For silver prints, only vintage works
and first prints made in the same year as the original negatives will be shown. A supremely exceptional
collection.
Jean-Francois Dreuilhe
Ph.D., Art Sciences, Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres, Arles, France, 2014
Translated by Raymond Angers, Traductions Angers Ltée
“The best recognition I got was that of Picasso. That counts more than anything.
It erases all the medals, all the academies, all bla-blas, all the stuff... because
Picasso is Picasso!”
Lucien Clergue
2 Picasso dans son atelier, Eté 1965, silver gelatin print, edition A/P, 18 x 12 in.
3
Nimeño II pose les banderilles, Feria de Nîmes 1980, silver gelatin print, edition A/P, 12 x 18 in.
4 Picasso aux arènes de Fréjus, Fréjus 1962, vintage silver gelatin print, 11 x 16 in.
5
Picasso au tambour, Notre Dame de Vie, Mougins 1967, vintage silver gelatin print, 12 x 10 in.
6 Jacqueline, L.M. Dominguin, Picasso, Cocteau, Serge Lifar, Lucia Bose, Les Baux de Provence
1959, silver gelatin print, edition E/A, 13 x 13 in.
7
Jean Cocteau (Le Poète) et son autoportrait, Studios de la Victorine, Nice 1959, silver gelatin print, edition A/P, 17 x 14 in.
8 Picasso et l’homme au mouton, Notre Dame de Vie, Mougins 1965, vintage silver gelatin print, edition E/A, 11 x 8 in.
9
Picasso sur la plage de l’hotel Gonnet, Cannes 1965, silver gelatin print, edition E/A, 13 x 18 in.
10 Picasso et Cathy (Fille de Jacqueline), Plage de Cannes 1965, vintage silver gelatin print, edition E/A, 12 x 16 in.
11 Untitled, Boston 1985, unique polaroid print, 20 x 24 in.
12 Untitled, New York 1986, unique polaroid print, 20 x 24 in.
13
Untitled, New York 1986, unique polaroid print, 20 x 24 in.
‘Clergue was clearly the only one who witnessed the birth of Aphrodite.’
Jean Cocteau
14 Nu de la mer, Camargue 1966, silver gelatin print, edition A/P, 13 x 18 in.
15 Géantes d’Italie 1993, silver gelatin print, edition A/P, 12 x 18 in.
16
Nu de la mer, Camargue
1958, vintage silver gelatin print, edition 20/20, 22 x 18 in.
17
Nu de la mer, Camargue
1964, vintage silver gelatin print, edition 2/20, 23 x 19 in.
18
Nu de la mer, Camargue
1962, platinum-palladium print, edition A/P, 14 x 14 in.
19
Nu de la plage, Camargue
1966, platinum-palladium print, edition III/V, 12 x 19 in.
20
Géantes de la mer, Camargue
1971, silver gelatin print, edition A/P, 12 x 19 in.
21
Nu aux verres brisés, La Grande-Combe
1993, platinum-palladium print, edition III/V, 12 x 19 in.
22 Nu à Quebec 1977, platinum-palladium print, edition V/V, 19 x 13 in.
23
Nu Zébré, New York 1998, silver gelatin print, edition 20/30, 15 x 22 in.
24
Nu Zébré, New York 2013
silver gelatin print, edition 1/30, 10 x 15 in.
25
Nu Zébré, New York 1997
silver gelatin print, edition 5/30, 15 x 22 in.
26
Nu Zébré, New York 2013
silver gelatin print, edition 1/30, 10 x 15 in.
27
Nu Zébré, New York 2013
silver gelatin print, edition 1/30, 10 x 15 in.
28
Nu Zébré, New York 2013
silver gelatin print, edition 1/30, 10 x 15 in.
29
Nu Zébré, New York 2013
silver gelatin print, edition 1/30, 10 x 15 in.
30 Nu Sicilien II 1985, fresson print, edition 1/30, 14 x 10 in.
31 Nu au store vénetien II, New York 1991, fresson print, edition 3/25, 12 x 16 in.
“Lucien, the Monet of the camera.”
Pablo Picasso
32 Nu Italien, Il Ciocco 1984, fresson print, edition 1/30, 9 x 14 in.
33
Nu à la chambre turque III, Villa Medicis, Rome 1986, fresson print, edition 1/30, 10 x 16 in.
34 Nu de la plage, Italie 1984, fresson print, edition 1/20, 10 x 16 in.
35
Reine du Canyon Rouge, Las Vegas 1983, fresson print, edition 2/25, 19 x 15 in.
36
Pharaonne II, Camargue 1981, fresson print, 16 x 10 in.
37
Nu strié, New York 1990, fresson print, edition 1/30, 14 x 9 in.
38 Triptyque de la femme au lion, Los Angeles 2007, cibachrome print, edition 1/15, 8 x 17 in.
39 Anges et Fé: Un seul souffle, Arles-Berlin 2010, cibachrome print, edition 1/15, 18 x 12 in.
LUCIEN CLERGUE
1934 Born in Arles, France on August 14, 1934, the only child of a grocer. From the age of seven takes violin lessons.
1944 One third of the city of Arles was destroyed by bombing, including the Clergue family home.
1949 Takes a serious interest in photography.
1952 Death of his mother. Leaves school to work in a food processing factory in Arles. Meets the writer Jean-Marie
Magnan, who remained a close friend and a permanent supporter.
1953 First meeting with Picasso, in Arles. For the first time has a photograph published in the local newspaper Le
Provençal.
1954 Production of his first photographic series: images of Jean Renoir’s production of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar
(performed in the Arena at Arles to mark the 2000th anniversary of the city’s founding), and Ruines, an
exploration of the surviving war damage in Arles. Also starts working on the series Saltimbanques.
1955 Visits Picasso in his studio in Cannes, France.
1956 First meeting with Jean Cocteau, in Paris. Starts work on the series Nudes, posing his models on the beaches
of the Camargue, France.
1957 Publication of his first book of photographs: Corps mémorable, with poems by Paul Eluard, cover designed
by Picasso, with an introductory poem by Jean Cocteau. Through Cocteau, Clergue meets Max Ernst, who
buys a series of Clergue’s images of dead flamingos, thereby becoming the first collector of Clergue’s work.
Meets Cartier-Bresson in Arles.
1958 Clergue’s first exhibition opens at the Kunstgewerbemuseum in Zurich, Switzerland.
1959 Guest photographer on Jean Cocteau’s film Le Testament d’Orphée. On December 31, Clergue leaves his job
at the factory and becomes a freelance photographer.
1960 The photographer Edward Steichen acquires ten works by Clergue for the collection of the Museum of
Modern Art in New York.
1961 Takes part in the last exhibition organized by Edward Steichen for the Museum of Modern Art in New York,
Diogenes with a Camera Number 5. Clergue’s film stills are included in the book version of Le Testament
d’Orphée, which also has Cocteau’s dialogue from the film.
1962 Stays in Brasilia, Brazil, as a guest of the architect Oscar Niemeyer. Meets Marcel Breuer and Edgar Varese.
1963 Marries Yolande Wartel. Birth of daughter Anne. Prepares a set design for the ballet Le fils de l’air by Cocteau
to mark the re-opening of the Munich Opera. The project is abandoned due to Cocteau’s death. Travels to India.
The Paris fashion designer Givenchy produces a collection of scarves with motifs taken from Clergue’s
photographs.
1965 Meets the poet Saint-John Perse. Takes photographs in the marshes of the Camargue. Makes his first film, Le
drame du taureau. Initiates a photographic department at the Musée Réattu, Arles.
1966 Birth of Clergue’s second daughter, Olivia, with Picasso as her godfather. Clergue wins the “Louis Lumière”
prize for his film Le drame du taureau.
1968 Clergue makes the film Picasso, War, Love and Peace for the series Museum Without Walls produced by
Universal Pictures. Delta de Sel is shown at the Cannes Film Festival and is nominated for an Academy Award.
1969
Serves as Art Director at the Arles Festival. Is co-founder of the Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie
in Arles with Jean-Maurice Rouquette and Michel Tournier.
1970 Makes first photographs of the series Nudes in the Wood.
1973
Death of Picasso.
1974 Invites Ansel Adams to the Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie in Arles. Clergue is elected a
member of the Académie in Arles.
1975 Takes the first photographs of the series Nudes in the City (Paris and New York). Also starts photographing in
color. The Centre National d’Art Contemporain, which will become the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris
acquires sixty photographs from the series Langage des sables for its collection.
1979 Completes a doctorate in photography at the Université de Provence, Marseille, at the recommendation of
Roland Barthes.
1980 Presented with the decoration “Chevalier de l’Ordre du Mérite” by French President, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing.
1981 Takes his first photographs in Death Valley. Makes his first experiments with a Polaroid camera. As part of the
event marking the centenary of the birth of Picasso, he lectures on the artist at the Metropolitan Museum of
Art, New York.
1982 In Monterey, California for Ansel Adams’ 80th birthday, Clergue presents him with the decoration “Commandeur
de l’Ordre National des Arts et Lettres”.
1985 First retrospective exhibition in the United States, organized by the George Eastman House, Rochester, New
York, curated by Robert Sobieszek. Produces his first large- scale Polaroid photographs (20 x 24 inches) in
Boston.
1986 At the Foto Fietsa in Higeshikawa, Japan, Clergue is awarded “Photographer of the Year.” A retrospective
exhibition at Fotografie Forum International, Frankfurt, Germany. Lectures and gives an homage to Picasso
at the Villa Medicis, Rome.
1987
Photographs artist Karel Appel creating a ballet to be performed in Paris. Retrospective at the Amos
Anderson Art Museum, Helsinki. First exhibition of his color photographs at the Musée d’Art Moderne de la
Ville de Paris.
1988 Organizes a fashion show in the 2000-year-old Théâtre Antique d’Arles, celebrating the five-year anniversary
of the Christian Lacroix Company.
1992 1993
The French National Fund for Contemporary Art (FNAC) purchases 8 silver prints.
1994 Donation of ten photographs to the Museum of Modern Art in New York, by a private collector. The Maison
Européenne de la Photographie, Paris acquires six images of the series Surimpressions tauromachiques.
1996 His photographs of the bullfighter Cristina Sanchez are published in numerous magazines and newspapers:
Paris Match, Stern, Sunday Mirror, Life, Vogue and American Photo.
1997 Important retrospective exhibition of 40 years of work given at the California Museum of Photography,
Riverside, California, curated by Jonathan Green.
2002 Exhibition of photographic portraits of Picasso in Picasso’s former Paris studio at 7 Rue des Grands Augustins.
The Musée des Beaux-Arts, Vitoria, Spain, acquires a collection of Clergue’s work.
2003 Presented with the decoration “Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur” by French president Jacques Chirac.
2005 Awarded the Lucie Award for the “Outstanding Life Achievement in Fine Arts in Photography.”
2007 Retrospectives at Espace Van Gogh, Arles (France), in Vienne at the KunstHaus (Austria) in Münster and
Erlangen (Germany).
2009 Major exhibitions: “Picasso intimate” at Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood (USA), in Arles (France) “Les
Gitans et leur Prince José Reyes” at Palais de l’Archevêché, in Aix en Provence (France) “Picasso chez Cézanne”
at Atelier Cézanne and Cité du Livre, at Musée Marmottan in Paris (France) “Lucien Clergue-Yann Athus
Bertrand, Deux Photographes Académiciens”.
Takes portrait photographs of Jackie Onassis in the Camargue and Umberto Eco in Arles.
2013
Elected President of l’Académie des Beaux-Arts.
2014 First exhibition in Canada at Odon Wagner Contemporary.
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2006 2004 2002
1999 1997 1993 1988
1987
1986
1985 1984 1980 1978 1974 1969 1963 1962 1958 Odon Wagner Contemporary, Toronto, Canada
Musée Réattu, Arles, France
Throckmorton Gallery, New York, USA
Musée Yves Brayer, Les-Baux-de-Provence, France
Centre Culturel Français, Madrid, Spain
Musée Jean Cocteau, Menton, France
Chris Beetles Gallery, London, England
Maison de la photographie, Moscow, Russia
French Institute, New York, USA
Artmia Foudation, Beijing, China
Palais de l’Archevêché, Arles, France
Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, USA
Recontres Internationales de la Photographie, Abbaye de Montmajour, Arles, France
Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nîmes, France
Retrospective, Museum für Kunst und Kultur, Dortmund, Germany
Abbaye de Montmajour, Arles, France
UCR California Museum of Photography, California, USA
Centro de la Imagen, Mexico City, Mexico
Musée Paul Eluard, Paris, France
FNAC, Paris, France
Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
International Photo Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, France
Amos Anderson Art Museum, Helsinki, Finland
Retrospective, ICP, New York, USA
Photo Fiesta, Higeshikawa, Japan
Retrospective, George Eastman House, Rochester, New York
Musée d’Art Moderne, Paris, France
French Institute, Tel Aviv, Israel
Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France
Shadai Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Photographic Center, Melbourne, Australia
Musée des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Belgium
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel
Leopold-Hoesch Museum, Düren, Germany
Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden
Kunstgewerbemuseum, Zurich, Switzerland
Pavillion de Marsan, Musée du Louvre, Paris, France
Kunstgewerbemuseum, Zurich, Switzerland
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2003 1999 1998 1990 1979 1978 1961 1958 Echec et succès en créativité, organized by Creando, Interlaken, Switzerland
The Association of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD) Exhibition, New York, USA
Paris Photo, Musée du Louvre, Paris, France
Galerie Lieberman and Saul, New York, USA
New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans, USA
Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico City, Mexico
Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA
Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA
SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, France
Boca Raton Museum of Art, Boca Raton, USA
Bühl Foundation, New York, New York, USA
Cabinet des Estampes à Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
Dortmund Art Museum, Dortmund, Germany
École Nationale de la Photographie, Arles, France
Fogg Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, USA
Fondation National d’Art Contemporain, Paris, France
Galeria de la Foto, Buenos Aires, Argentina
George Eastman House, Rochester, New York, USA
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel
Kunstmuseum, Basel, Switzerland
La Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, France
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, LA, California, USA
Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris, France
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York, USA
Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Tokyo, Japan
Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden
Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, France
Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne, Switzerland
Musée Picasso, Paris, France
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas, USA
Museum of Modern Art, New York, New York, USA
Museum of Modern Art of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Museum of New Orleans, New Orleans, Lousiana, USA
National Gallery of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
Oxford College Collection, Oxford, England
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie, Arles, France
Preus Fotomuseum, Horten, Norway
Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, USA
Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C., USA
Victoria Gallery, Melbourne, Australia
Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
Front Cover: Nu Zébré, New York 1997, silver gelatin print, edition 11/30, 22 x 15 in.
Back Cover: Picasso à la Cigarette 1956, silver gelatin print, edition A/P, 14 x 11 in.
For all works in exhibition, please visit odonwagnergallery.com
CREDITS
CURATORIAL LAYOUT
DESIGN PRINTING
PHOTOGRAPHY
Odon Wagner
Rafael Wagner
Caitlin McCullough
Caitlin McCullough
Angela Wagner
Solisco Québec
© Lucien Clergue 2014
198 Davenport Road, Toronto, ON M5R 1J2 Canada 416-962-0438 or 800-551-2465 [email protected]
ISBN: 978-1-927447-12-3 National Library of Canada “Lucien Clergue: La Lumière Transcrite”
Copyright: Odon Wagner Gallery, 2014 odonwagnergallery.com