Iris IX, Circa 2020

Virginie Cadoret  

Virginie Cadoret contemporary artist has expressed herself through painting and drawing since 1999. Her figurative work is characterized by an exploration of color and texture, the background treated in an abstract manner highlights the subject.

Color plays a central role in his works. She uses varied palettes composed of complements, ranging from bright and bold tones to softer and subtle nuances, to create specific atmospheres and provoke emotional reactions.

The rice paper used to create monotypes that she places on the canvas adds a tactile dimension to her works. The folds and tears are the hazardous symbols of life.

Its pure and frank lines bring clarity and definition to the subjects. In painting, they help establish his composition, the clear lines delimiting the objects contrast with the more textured and fluid parts of his paintings, adding a dynamic dimension to his works. In drawing, the minimalist approach emphasizes the essence of shapes and colors, allowing viewers to focus on the fundamental elements of the work. The way they are drawn – the pressure, the continuity, the full and the downstrokes – allows them to convey a feeling of life and movement.

The management of light and shadows is also crucial in his work. As Virginie likes to say, “There can be no light without shadows." By creating deep, colorful shadows, she creates volume, a play of contrasts that attracts the eye and brings her compositions to life.

His work is part of the continuity of art nouveau and art deco. She drew certain themes from it, such as that of flowers and women. She was inspired by the work of Hector Guimard to create a series on the metro entrances, and studied the staircase of the Petit Palais or the Grand Palais with the Nave and its main staircase.Virginie is deeply touched by artists like Alphonse Mucha, Tamara de Lempicka for the graphic side of their work, by Egon Schiele for the incisive or soft side of his line, by Zao Wou-ki for his composition, his management of colors and transparencies, by Caravaggio and Gustave Klint for their light and their narrative capacity.

Narration that Virginie experiments with in her series Filiation and which she uses in her series dedicated to the man-horse pair.

Just like the architectural elements she paints, Virginie continues to build a unique work based on these elements which collide and balance each other.