Discover the contemporary work of Claudine LOQUEN

Claudine Loquen is a french outsider painter born in Normandy. She participated to many group and  solo exhibitions, in France and all over the world (Italy, Spain, Austria, USA, Japon, China, Canada, Israël, Belgium, Luxemburg).Artist apraisals : AKOUN 2014/2015   900 euros (65cm x 50cm)Some exhibitions 2004 - 2014 :Galeries :Galerie Saint-Louis - Toulon (works on display)Galerie Bellat - ParisGalerie 29 - AudierneGalerie Mailletz - Paris (solo)Galerie Claire Corcia - ParisGalerie Les Pyramides - Port MarlyGalerie Cécile Charron - Paris (works on display)Galerie de l\'Entrepôt - ParisGalerie Cap\'Art - Quintin (solo)Galerie du Croissant - Bruxelles (Belgium)Galerie Primo Piano Livingallery - Lecce (Italy)Salons :Salon d\'automne - France, Spain, China, Japon, Israël, LuxemburgSalon des Artistes Français - Grand Palais - ParisSalon des Arts de Maisons-Laffitte (As guest painter)Business\'Art - Espace Pierre Cardin - ParisArt en Capital - Grand palais - Les artistes français - ParisOutsider exhibitions :AmIs - Miermaigne - Authon-du-PercheBiennale d\'art singulier et naïf - Saint-JunienL\'atelier singulier - Elbeuf Saint-AubinFestival International d\'art singulier - Bézu Saint-EloiFestival d\'art actuel - Dives-sur-MerFestival de Banne - BanneArt  Fairs :Art Mez - Metz Art Innsbruck - AustriaArt Affordable Art Fair - Paris Lille Art Fair - Lille Other places :Château de Grouchy - Osny (solo)Château Jander - Listrac Médoc (solo)Château de Gordes - Gordes (solo)Château de Bricquebec - Le Chartrier - Bricquebec (solo)Chapelle Saint-Jacques - Mantes (solo)Mairie du 4e - Princesses Singulières - Paris (solo)Sénat -Jardin du Luxembourg - Pavillon Davioud - Paris (solo)Alliance Française - Atlanta - (USA) (solo)Château d\'Harcourt - Chauvigny (solo)Château de Rully - l\'art au château de Rully - RullyChâteau de Waroux - Waroux (Belgium)Chapelle des Sépulcrines - Visé (Belgium)Centre culturel Ukrainien - ParisMaison du Limousin - ParisMusée de la Halle Saint-Pierre - Les Métamorphosées - ParisMusée d\'art Spontané - Evere (Belgium)Bibliography :Portrait Art Today - éditions Patou, tomes I et IINature Art Today - éditions Patou, tome IIGuide des Ateliers d\'artistes - éditions PatouBible de l\'art Singulier,éditions Lelivredart, tomes II, III, IVClaudine Loquen - éditions Lelivredart, textes de S.LoquenClaudine Loquen - éditions Lelivredart, textes de JP Gavard-PerretMagazin\'art - Québec (Canada)Guide de Roussan - Québec (Canada)Distinctions -Prix Jean Anouilh - salon d\'automne de Paris (France)Prix France/Europe (CIAZZ) - Québec (Canada)As illustrator :\"Comme en semant\" - édtions SOC & FOC - textes de Ph. Quinta,Illustrations : Claudine LoquenEducation :Self-Taught\"The roots of what is now known as “marginal art” lie in forms of creativity that were considered impossible to categorise as early as the Renaissance – art characterised by awkward lines, over-bright colours, and failure to obey the rules of proportion. Some of the greatest artists of the twentieth century were inspired by marginal art in all its forms – folk art, outsider art, children’s drawings, and primitive art. They saw these marginal expressions of creativity as welcome sources of creative freedom, where there were no limits to the boldness of an artist’s imagination.  But how to begin exploring the wild frontiers of imagination? It was not always easy for a young artist, as everyone has their own unique voice. Claudine Loquen let her imagination take over from accuracy of portrayal and placed higher value on the truth of the heart than visual realism. She found her subjects in the fantasies she had as a little girl of princesses and ballerinas.    For years, she painted slender silhouettes in Indian ink – a technique in which she is highly skilled. She drew long, willowy figures inspired by calligraphy, gave them tutus and beads, and made them dance and parade graciously.  She invented characters with long swan-like necks and full lips and placed them in groups on a relatively neutral background.    These characters constantly feature in her canvases, as if in a dream. They can be somewhat eerie, with their staring eyes set deep in their round heads. Her little heroes and heroines have evolved, and Claudine Loquen’s oeuvre has changed.    Her canvases are a firework display of comical, exuberant shapes and colours. Every little corner is filled, adding to the harmony of the whole. The artist has given birth to new creatures – slender women with the head of a cat or the beaks and feathers of a bird – who are the starting point for new flights of imagination.    The atmosphere of Carnival is a fluid, transparent blue. In Criterium , it is softened. The same round heads with elongated necks have long been watching over the space. Their eyes still do not move. They gaze straight ahead, like robots. There are flowers everywhere – blossoms that spring directly from the earth without stems and without the melancholy air of classical still life paintings. They are artistic decorations – a votive offering laid at the feet of Happiness.    In Stolen Kiss , the characters float like those in Chagall’s Newlyweds of the Eiffel Tower .  It is as if everything is slightly intoxicated. The narration is punctuated by symbolic elements. Red hearts pulse with burning desire.  Banks of flowers like wallpaper samples delineate several overlapping spaces. The artist uses collage and writing. Thin curving lines and small dots meander from top to bottom, creating an impression of movement. The colours are bold and bright. The draughtsmanship is highly sophisticated, capturing the happiness and emotion of the kiss, the calyx of each flower, and every dewdrop. The young woman has lost one shoe and the young man is blushing. The woman’s left hand is elegantly extended and her pink handbag hangs from her wrist. Strangely, its clasp is a lock. Has she given the key to Vincent? \"   Ileana Cornea, Paris.