Stéphane Ducret : Not For Tourists (after Josh Smith)

I am pleased to present my very first exhibition in the new premises shared by my studio and ART CLASSE, in Pregny-Chambésy / Geneva. Having freed myself from all gallery representation in order to better concentrate on the development of my artistic approach, I inaugurate here the first of a series of studio exhibitions.

This exhibition introduces a new aspect of my appropriation work, destined to develop in the future in the same form, but on different subjects.

The exhibition consists of 10 paintings: A single large painting representing the "portrait" of the artist who inspires my work for this show, Josh Smith, known for his paintings in expressionist and fauvist hues and marked by large brushstrokes. A series of eight small paintings based on his famous "Palm Tree Paintings", which were seemingly easy-sleazy and even a little "awkward" because they played with kitsch representations even though they were very well painted. And a never-before-exhibited work from my previous series, REAL ESTATE (2017 - 2021), in which contemporary masterpieces, disconnected from their original context, were associated with imaginary and strange stagings, but also highly elaborate in their visual and conceptual composition.

All these works, or series of works, are linked to my painting courses for ART CLASSE, the famous REAL/FAKE workshops, where I teach how to paint in the manner of recognized contemporary (and postmodern) artists. I combine a theoretical part on the artist, his life and work, with learning techniques on the materials used and the artist's way of painting.

The Portrait of Josh Smith, 2023, inaugurates a series of portraits of well-known contemporary artists, which I intend to develop from now on. It's composed like part of our smartphone screen, when we perform an image search on a subject with Google Image: two columns present rounded-edge photographs of the subject we're looking for, obtained by Google search, and below which, two lines of text serve as captions, for example: "Artforum / David Rimanelli on Josh Smith." Here, I invent a composition based on the same scheme, in which I include a portrait of the artist who is the subject of the work and the exhibition. I add two emblematic paintings by the artist, a view of a past exhibition, in this case at the Centre d'art contemporain de Genève in 2009.

And to weave the link with the rest of my work on show, I add a detail from a painting I did for this exhibition, "beyond" Josh Smith's manner. In addition, subtle changes have been made in this new composition, notably in some of the text, for example: "ART CLASSE / Stéphane Ducret on Josh Smith."

The 8 small paintings, all measuring 60 x 50 cm, represent the progression in my painting courses for ART CLASSE. First, two paintings of palm trees that could be mistaken for originals, were it not for the two prominent initials "SD" ostentatiously signing them. Next, the Geneva water jet replaces the palm trees, again painted in the Josh Smith style, in shadow on a background of contrasting bright colors. The second shot is reminiscent of works by Edvard Munch and Bram van Velde, from which Josh Smith himself probably drew inspiration.

And 5 paintings that take up the idea of the Geneva "postcard", the famous jet d'eau, recalling the original idea of "Motel Paintings" by Josh Smith. This time, however, they make an obvious break with both the artist-subject and the idea of kitsch, as I have decided to prevent the public from appreciating the decorative aspect that these works might take on. I paint them deliberately and disproportionately "badly", sloppy, battered and heavily flecked with leftover oil paint from my palette (or plate), which I amuse myself by throwing, almost "spitting" onto the canvas (so as "not to have any leftovers"). The unease engendered by these two antagonisms, the "postcard" image and the dirty way of staging it, is at the very origin of the title of this exhibition: Not For Tourists.

A painting from the REAL ESTATE series closes this exhibition, with the mise en abîme of 3 iconoclastic works by brothers Jake and Dinos Chapman, which link religion and junk food. In my painting, they disrupt the tranquil order of a kitchen filled with fine ceramic dishes, large and small, in which it's easy to imagine "homemade" dishes made with delicious local produce.

Stéphane Ducret

Images : Stéphane Ducret: Not For Tourists (after Josh Smith)
© Stéphane Ducret Studio

Sixtine Crutchfield (modern & contemporary art specialist) in conversation with Stéphane Ducret with subtitles available in English and French (16’20’’). The complete Conversation (1h10’) can be seen by clicking on this link.