Mise en page 1 - Serge Mendjisky

G A L E R I E
N E W
E L Y S E E S
Y O R K
Serge Mendjisky
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009
Exhibition from December 2nd, 2009 to January 3rd, 2010
S E R G E
M E N D J I S K Y ’ S
Serge Mendjisky does not bare himself easily. He
creates a mystery through a strategy of visual blur,
which could be considered a style if such a thing were
still relevant in art today. Having a style and being part of
a movement are little comforts not so pertinent
anymore. We know now that what really mattered in
the art world were “les amities de bistro” (bistro
friendships) and the old “isms” were invented over a
bottle of Savennières or Soave. The painter is alone,
theories have abandoned him, and schools have left him
out in the cold. Even fathers are long departed. And to
understand Serge Mendjisky, we must learn about his
father. The first thing that surprised me in the great book
recounting his work: Mendjisky speaks first and
foremost of his father. No man ever introduces himself
by talking about his dad. It is, of course, an illusion.
Behind the love and admiration for the hero lie issues of
abandonment and violence. The child never gleaned any
answers. History, the great History of our textbooks,
doesn't explain everything, and never deals with the
essential questions of traces and wounds left behind,
nor does it comfort.
By taking up painting, as a trade passed from father to
son, Serge Mendjisky challenges the visible. “I am the
son you do not see. I play tricks with the way you look
at my works. They mislead and disturb you. They make
you squint.” In opposition to what Impressionism and
Pointillism offered - joy, rapture, fluid enchantment Mendjisky’s work immediately sought to confront,
challenge and provoke art lovers, the ones who look at a
painting while setting pleasure above all else. For
Mendjisky, the first subject is not the landscape or the
portrait; it is the eye that tries to recognize them. His
stories - for his paintings are talkative - are a mental
investigation of all hypotheses addressing the character
of visual illusions. He no longer needs to paint, and this
is also true of the sons of writers and musicians: they
are the painting, the writing, and the music. They
assume their inheritance on condition that the task no
longer implies a desire to build a life's work, to bequeath
a name. One does not look with emotion alone at the
painting of “Rose and Serge”, asleep beneath a tree.
One understands that this curled-up child is raw
pictorial matter, a tube of passion for painting from
which, one day, under torture, on Rue Lauriston, the
tears of the question will squeeze out: What do you see?
Existentialism turned upside down. Picasso was also the
son of a painter and “Guernica” places before the Nazis
the paradox of creation: “This is you”.
Then comes the horse. It goes back to Lascaux, a place
where the painter was not supposed to represent
hunting scenes nor please fresco lovers. We know what
has unraveled between men and horses since the
beginning of time. We belong more to the civilization of
the horse than to that of bronze. The invention of fire is
a culinary anecdote compared to the unsurpassed
stroke of genius which simply consisted of mounting an
animal and seeing the world at the speed of the wind.
The horses of Lascaux show what man tries to see;
those enormous bellies are not horses, but the visual
interpretation of a desire.
The painter of Lascaux comes up against the paradoxes
of impossible objects. The horse is a figure that poses
as an opponent of physical laws. It is a succession of
Penrose triangles in motion, a “blivet” or “poiuyt” with
four legs and a tail, something to drive you completely
Mad*. Sooner or later, every artist faces the horse.
On cover :
Pauline et moi
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas - 195 x 114 cm - 76.8 x 44.9 in
E Q U I N E
H Y P O T H E S E S
he is already aware. His lacerations, these complex
cognitive illusions, will, however, add a very bold chapter
to the history of all the attempts made for the
appropriation of speed. The decomposition of the equine
instant, displayed in this latest exhibition, this end result
which is also a return to the basics, breaks the strange
taboo of creative time - unity in inspiration that has
sacred value. An inspiration fallen from the sky, like the
release of the artist’s cerebral shutter. On the same
canvas, Mendjisky suddenly weaves the threads of
divergent temporalities. He appeals to the memory of
what the race-goer calls “a meeting”, a succession of
races in one afternoon. Always in the same place, with
the same ticket in his pocket, the painter waits for
the sun to shine on the right number. His thousands
of digital photos are in a lottery whose randomness
is annihilated by the obstinacy of a presence, the
insistence of a gaze. The multiplication of attempts then
produces this kinetic prodigy. All that remains to be done
is to take it to the laboratory, Rue du Poète, Passage de
la Mort du Loup.
Abstraction would be a smarter way of overcoming the
irritation caused by the flight of herds, that elusive
dimension captured by cinema: Speed. I'm not talking
about movement, which has long been mastered by
painters. Speed, on the other hand, is what Eadweard
Muybridge tried to conquer, hacking away in vain.
The horse has always left artists reeling. Serge
Mendjisky will end up like all the rest, a fact of which
For any further information regarding
the availability of the works
in this catalogue and their prices,
do not hesitate to contact us.
We no longer know what we see when looking at
Mendjisky’s canvas. A race, a divisionist painting or a
residual image imprinted in the farthest reaches of a
madman's mind. One who has gambled his shirt or his
wife, and for eternity, fixes his dreams of fortune in the
realm of doubt.
Christophe Donner
May 9th, 2009
* Translator’s note: “Mad” is the name of a magazine on
whose cover the “blivet” or “poiuyt” was shown in March 1965.
Galerie Elysées
Ph: +1 212 333 5600
galerie_elysees @ yahoo.com
Le défilé de Longchamp
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas - 150 x 69 cm - 59.1 x 27.2 in
Fille de joie
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
90 x 180 cm - 35.4 x 70.9 in
Le Pont Neuf II
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
130 x 97 cm - 51.2 x 38.2 in
Hommage à Barack Obama
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
130 x 97 cm - 51.2 x 38.2 in
Miss Coke
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
170 x 170 cm - 66.9 x 66.9 in
Up Town Loop
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
130 x 195 cm - 52.1 x 76.8 in
Grande vue nouvelle
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas - 150 x 66 cm - 59 x 26 in
L’Arc de Triomphe
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
97 x 130 cm - 38.2 x 51.2 in
Le Café de la Paix
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
116 x 89 cm - 45.7 x 35 in
Lucie
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
130 x 97 cm - 51.2 x 38.2 in
La statue de la Liberté
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
66 x 150 cm - 26 x 59.1 in
Chiquita By Day
Monotype - Toned silver print, mounted on canvas
120 x 101 cm - 47.2 x 39.8 in
Serge Mendjisky
Serge Mendjisky was born in 1929 in Paris. As his father,
Maurice Mendjisky was a painter of the “School of Paris”,
Serge was introduced to the artistic world very early on.
After his studies at the Beaux Arts in Paris, he became an
established artist, exhibiting his paintings in Europe,
Japan and the United States. Even though he was a
painter, he constantly used photography as preliminary
studies for his paintings.
In 2000 he decided to work with photography as the final
medium for his artistic expression. He started to use the
collage technique to alter photographic images and
articulate his multi-dimensional vision of the world. The
multiple and mixed perspectives expressed through these
collages, are clearly reminiscent of the analytical phase of
Cubism. Pablo Picasso, who Serge Mendjisky knew well
because of his father's involvement in the art scene of the
time, told him once that accurate cubism would fully be
achieved through photography. Serge Mendjisky always
kept this statement in mind, and after many years of visual
exploration, he found a way to not only question the
appearance of the world, but also our perceptual behavior.
By decomposing and recomposing the skylines of some of
the most well-known cities of the world like New York and
Paris, Serge Mendjisky creates new urban landscapes
that, question our sense of perception.
Volumes, light and colors create diverse visual rhythms
that establish new notions of time and space. Through the
lens of Serge Mendjisky, Broadway becomes an explosion
of multicolored lights, while downtown New York poetically
waltzes with a cello. Recognizable urban landscapes are
redefined and their reality is reshaped to become threedimensional.
Serge Mendjisky's work is well represented in both private
and public collections including the Museum of Modern
Art in Paris, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the
Pushkin Museum of Fine Art in Moscow.
B I O G R A P H Y
1929
1944
Galerie Urban, Paris.
Illustrations: “Jean de Florette” by Marcel
Pagnol.
Serge Mendjisky is born in Paris, on 24 May.
Takes part in the parisian Insurrection.
Liberation Medal, Resistance Medal,
Combatant Cross.
1947
1948
Studies at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts.
1949
Settles at Nice, continues painting
encouraged by Picasso, Jacques Villon and
Dunoyer de Segonzac. To earn his living he
works in a photoengraving studio.
At Paul Grimaud's house, he is taught the
technic of motion-picture cartoons and
participate in “La Bergére et le Ramoneur” “The Shepherdess and the Sweep” produced
by Grimaud and Prévert.
1959
First individual exhibition at Galerie
Saint-Placide, Paris.
1960
Norwal New York Gallery,
Burr Beverly Hills Gallery.
1961
1962
1963
1964
Saint-Placide Gallery, Paris.
1965
Exhibition in Melbourne and Sidney: South
Yarres Gallery.
Exhibition in Philadelphia: Richter Gallery.
1966
Exhibitions: Galerie Urban, Paris.
Frost and Reed Gallery, London.
Galerie Felix Valotton, Lausanne.
Galerie Kramer, Zurich.
1968
1969
Exhbits at Tel Aviv.
1972
1973
Exhibition: Galerie Urban, Paris.
1974
1975
Exhibition: Galerie Urban, Paris.
1976
1977
Exhibition at Musée de Saint-Paul de Vence.
Urban Gallery Paris, Tuxon Arizona.
Walter Gallery New York, Miami.
An evolution in his painting is apparent, firstly
influenced by Van Gogh, then by Cézanne, and
finally he discovers Divisionism which allows
him to express himself totally.
Ito Gallery, Tokyo.
Rincon del Arte, Caracas.
Agras Gallery, Washington.
1980
Exhibits in Port Grimaud, France.
Where a new collection of 36 litographs is
edited and presented by Marcel Pagnol,
Dunoyer de Segonzac, H. Troyat, F. Spoerry,
the founder of Port Grimaud.
Exhibition: la Galerie Urban, Paris.
Exhibits at Galerie Yves Jaubert, Paris.
Edition of 16 litographs, inspired by poems of
Francis Lemarque and dedicated to Paris.
Exhibitions: Grove Gallery, Miami.
Schwart Gallery, Beverly Hills.
Exhibition: Galerie Mariette Giraud, Saint-Paul
de Vence.
Exhibition: Galerie La Licorne, Juan les Pins.
B I O G R A P H Y
1981
Exhibition: Richmond Gallery, London.
Bruton Street Gallery, London.
Exhibition: Salomon Gallery, Dublin.
1998
2000
1982
1984
Exhibition: Galerie l'Orangeraie, Saint-Paul
de Vence.
2001
Galerie d'Hermance, Genève.
Group exhibition “Paris - Atmosphère 19002000”, Atelier Saint-Honoré, Paris and “Paris
- New York”, Galerie Seine 51, Paris.
Purchase of an art work by the Carnavalet
Museum: “Centre Vasculaire de l'Art
Contemporain”.
2002
Purchase of an art work by Canary Wharf.
Chrono-spacio-photography.
Art Sud Beyrouth, Liban.
2003
Société Générale, Paris - La Défense.
Galerie du Château, Vence.
Atelier Grognard, Rueil-Malmaison.
Galerie Municipale, Levallois-Perret.
2004
Guy Pieters Gallery, Knokke le Zoute.
444 Gallery, San Fransisco.
2005
International Artterritory Gallery, Los Angeles.
Artexpo, New York.
Star’t, Gallery Guy Pieters.
Art Paris, Gallery Guy Pieters, Paris.
Canon Show Room, Paris.
Serge Mendjisky is a member of and has
taken part in all the most important French
art shows: Peintres témoins de leur Temps,
Salon des Artistes Français, Salon d'Automne,
Salon des Indépendants, Amis de F. Schmitt,
Jeunes Peintres.
1985
Exhibition: Richmond Gallery, London.
1986
Exhibition: Galerie Guiot, Paris.
1987
His tongue is affected by cancer and his
condition prevents him from creating.
1988
In order to forget his unbearable physical
pain Serge Mendjisky devotes himself to
sculpture, working with wood, copper and
brass encouraged by César and Arman.
1989
Galerie Urban, Tokyo. Realizes and installs
“Le Cyclotron” (a 18 meters high sculpture)
at the Institut of Cancer.
1990
Galerie Urban, Nagoya.
Travels to Moscou. Purchase of an art work
by the Pouchkine Museum.
1991
Exhibition “Hors Mesure” at the Galerie
Urban, Paris.
1993
Creation of the “Menorah de la Paix”.
Group exhibition at Galerie Aktarus, Strasbourg.
Galerie Guigne, Paris.
1995
Bruton Street Gallery, London.
Revel Gallery, New York.
1996
Creation of a monumental mosaïc “The Octopus”
acquired by Pentland Group, London.
Galerie Francis Barlier, Paris.
Galerie Visconti, Paris.
B I O G R A P H Y
Works by Serge Mendjisky may be found in
more than 25 international museums,
either as a result of the purchases of the
museum, or as donations of private collectors.
His works are included in some of the richest
collections in the world, such as those of:
G. Renant – Prince Aga Khan – N. Rockfeller –
M. Bleustein Blanchet – M.Pagnol - H.Troyat –
Dunoyer de Segonzac – Ed. de Rotschild –
Ford – Kennedy – Loeb – Zammaron –
P.L. Weiller – L. Feraud – Sir Ch. Forte –
Lord Hirschfield – Gulbekian – E.G. Robinson...
Guy Pieters Galleries, Knokke Le Zoute.
Latem, Saint-Paul de Vence.
Next Art Gallery Arezzo, Italy.
Monte Paschi Banque, Paris.
Art Elysées, Salon d’art contemporain, Paris.
2008
Permanently: Galerie des Templiers, La Baule.
Galerie Hurtebize, Cannes.
Galerie Nuances et Lumière, Lyon.
Galerie Guy Pieters, Saint-Paul de Vence.
International Opera Gallery.
Galerie Saltiel, Le Castellet (Start Strasbourg).
Galerie Alexis Lartigue, Paris.
Next Art Gallery Bergamo, Italy.
Mada Primavesi Galeria, Madrid.
Solo exhibitions: Galerie Palmyre, Paris.
Monte Paschi Banque, Monaco.
Golf de Gassin, Saint-Tropez.
Art Elysées, Salon d’art contemporain, Paris.
Galerie 5, Toulouse.
Galerie Bel Air Fine Art, Genève.
2009
“Les hypothèses hippiques de Serge
Mendjisky” Galerie Palmyre, Paris.
Wanrooij Gallery, Hollande.
Galerie des Lices, Saint-Tropez.
Contemporary Art Fair of Los Angeles.
Jane Kahan Gallery, New York.
Monte Paschi Banque, Paris.
Addiction Art, Tour.
Art Elysées, Salon d’art contemporain, Paris.
Solo exhibition: Galerie Elysées, New York.
Permanentlly: Galerie Normandy, Honfleur.
There is some relevant literature about
Mendjisky's painting, including books by :
A. Maurois – M. Pagnol – F. Mauriac –
H. Troyat – M.Garçon – Dunoyer de Segonzac –
C.R. Marx – R. Charmet – G. Dornant –
M. Gauthier – Ch. Chasse – Roger Bouillot –
B. Conlan – J. Bouret – G. Besson –
Démosthène Davvetas – Christophe Donner.
2006
Monography Serge Mendjisky “3 000 semaines
de création”, Edition Palmyre Paris-Musées.
Canon France, Paris - La Défense.
Photo-Mobiles Galerie Palmyre, Paris.
Star’t Gallery, Strasbourg.
Guy Pieters – Art, Paris, Knokke Le Zoute,
Saint-Paul de Vence.
2007
Exhibition and purchase of a big photomobile
New York by Société Foncière Lyonnaise, Paris.
Salon du livre, Paris.
Permanently Galerie Palmyre, Paris.
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Galerie Elysées
is honored to invite you, to the private viewing of the works by
Serge Mendjisky
Opening Reception
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009
in the presence of the artist
6:00pm to 9:30pm
Exhibition from December 2nd, 2009 to January 3rd, 2010
Everyday from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm
NEW YORK
104 Central Park South ■ New York, NY 10019
GALERIE
ELYSEES
NEW YORK
GALERIE ELYSEES
NEW YORK
104 Central Park South ■ New York, NY 10019
Ph: +1 212 333 5600 ■ Fax: +1 212 333 5603
galerie_elysees @ yahoo.com
NEW YORK
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