Notre Lente Évolution series

2020

The pandemic provokes introspection on an individual level. It also triggers the questioning of many ways of doing things in our society.

Both individually and within our institutions, how can we fight for better mental health? How can we improve gender equity? How can we put an end to domestic violence?

Each of these paintings is first covered with automatic writing. These are spontaneous texts, written directly on the support, and intimately linked to the symbolism of the work. I call them Dialogues de fond. This practice has been essential to my creative process for the past 11 years. You can read some of them here.

Background dialogue, automatic writing
INTRODUCTION

These texts, necessary to my creative process over the past 10 years, are the result of automatic writing. Spontaneous, I write them without any time for reflection to encourage the connection with my unconscious as much as possible.

You’ll find the word fomme in all my texts. I invented this word, a contraction of the words woman and man. It replaces the word man to designate an individual of the human species.

Being a woman, I couldn’t have written the word man without feeling excluded. On the other hand, using the word person would have given me the impression that I wasn’t talking about anyone. It lacked flesh. And the words ” human being ” don’t focus enough on the particularity of an individual. I’ve been using this word in all my Feature Dialogues since 2010.

Background dialogue, automatic writing beneath the work
INTROSPECTION

– Tell me about us who are helpless in this confinement. Tell us what we have to do.

+ A large part of the world’s population is experiencing unprecedented solidarity. She becomes aware of us, of the impermanence of things, of the need for others. That’s what strikes you at first glance. After that, it’s time for introspection. This is more difficult. But human beings are driven to do it, and it proves essential for the rest of the world. Who am I? And what do I do with my life? What are my values? What values do I propagate in my words and actions? Is my heart in tune with them?

Human beings know this theoretically: the most important thing is love. But how does he put this theory into practice in his everyday life? The current confinement allows him to observe how he has acted. Change isn’t easy. First of all, you have to be destabilized, which puts you in a very uncomfortable position.

– How do you open your mind? How can we grasp new concepts that can descend into the body and inhabit the life that propels our gestures?

+ The human being needs to crack, deeply, and it’s through these cracks that the new energy can circulate. The main obstacle is obviously the man’s ego. This dear fellow has his ego firmly anchored in his identity, as if he were only what he thinks he is. But it’s much more, infinitely more. His ego blocks access to a large part of himself. He must recognize his ruts, and this recognition will enable him to increase his strength tenfold. The man suffers so much, perpetuating the ignorance of his ancestors without really putting his foot down to bring about profound change.
It’s life itself that’s forcing him to take this international break, under the
command of a virus.

– What does the consumer suffer from most?

+ He suffers because of his ignorance. He built his thought by simply drawing the building materials from his conscience. Whereas there is a phenomenal amount of information in his subconscious. It’s through this information that he can first get to know himself better, then express it, and finally share it. The man imposes limits on himself through his hasty judgment, which comforts him and gives him the impression of stability in his environment. All these judgments end up suffocating the mind, which is also extremely busy in the digital age. Restoring the body’s central role will help the child to better integrate essential learning. Once the body has regained its central power, the
information pouring into the mind from all sides will be more easily sorted out; many of these items, which only bring suffering to the man, will be eliminated more quickly. The others will be ranked according to priority. But the man hasn’t yet understood the hidden power he holds to clear his mind and prepare it to receive new information he never imagined.

Background dialogue, automatic writing beneath the work
FIGHT MY THOUGHTS

– Tell me about the effects of the confinement we’re experiencing in this time of pandemic.

+ The man has a heavy heart. Her negative thoughts loop around in her head like an obsession. He’s unsettled inside, he has an emotional hole in his chest, his mind is dark. He can’t see clearly what’s coming next. His future is vague, painful and foreign, like someone else’s future. He can’t stand the emptiness in his belly, which he wants to fill at all costs. We’re talking about the preferred consumer.
His whole body becomes impatient, even aggressive. The man is open to solidarity, he sees the misery around him, but after several weeks, his heart tightens. It has less interior space. Peace is running out. He wants to get out, he wants to run, he wants to scream. All the elements that contributed to his fragile inner equilibrium are missing.

– What can he do to help himself? How can I strengthen my inner self?

+ He has to talk to himself, he has to shake himself up, he has to swim against the main current that propels him towards everything that’s negative for him. He must understand that he has power. He must leave the role of extra in the film of his own life and take on the role of director.

It’s a chance for him to discover the power he has over his thoughts. The source of everything he feels in his body lies in his thoughts. They have a real effect on her body. He has to realize this and maneuver his life from the command post. We’re not talking about mental pathologies here. There are, of course, mental illnesses that require specific medical care. We’re talking about gum in general.

– And just by controlling his thoughts, he can be released from his oppression?

+ It’s consistency in this discipline that’s hard to maintain. The intensity and recurrence of negative thoughts increase the difficulty of the test. When battle fatigue sets in, the man lets himself go.

(text in the center of the painting, hidden)
The man can draw from himself the will to bring what he is, what he thinks and how he acts, back into the light. Yes, he finds himself up against the tide, wounded and weakened. And the group effect increases oppression tenfold. But he’s capable of saying out loud the opposite of what he’s thinking. It’s quite simple. It’s the first step on the way out.
We’re not talking hypocrisy here. If a fomme often says the opposite of what he thinks to other fommes, that’s hypocrisy. He hides his intentions for a specific purpose. Rather, we’re talking here about the completely personal thoughts that arise in solitude and concern only the man himself. That’s where he can catch a steady stream of negative thoughts that undermine his mood and his whole life.
The light is always there, always present. Many men have not been equipped from the start to identify it, to court it, to tame it, to invite it into their lives. The many trials have blinded them. But she’s there, right next to them.

(text in bottom rectangle with recumbent man)

I’m on my own. I’m scared. The silence around me is immense. My cavernous voice overpowers me. Everything assaults me. I don’t know where I am anymore. I’m lost. My black voice speaks to me. She doesn’t love anyone. She’s looking for war. I’m scared. It’s war. I breathe. You need to breathe. My body is swelling, it’s heavy. All around me is silence. I have to go talk to them. Tell them they don’t understand anything. Let them bump me, let them hit me, let them throw me to the ground. They don’t know. I have to tell them.
The silence thickens around me. I’m a robot. I’ll follow orders. But how do I get up? I’ve taken refuge in my bunker. My body is closed. The voice resonates and demands. I’m scared.

+ Stop! Shake it off! You tell yourself a story. You believe. Get out of this
scenario. Get out of yourself. Talk to yourself. Say: that’s enough! And convince yourself of the best. You can.

POEM under the work entitled
I'M SICK

You’re young
You feel beautiful
Your house isn’t built yet
Your sex will receive the other

You hope for everything
All life is yours
And this apparent confidence
Makes you very attractive

You go for it
And the other tears you apart

I’m torn
I am assaulted
I’m walking around
A broken-down house

I’m afraid of the other
I try but it hurts
I’m not here
I walk without me

Building on years of experience
The house that is me
Attempts and failures
Pain and courage

When I finally open the door
My home is a pleasure
Connected and vibrant
I’m me in me.