Discover the Harmonious Intersection of Color and Geometry in Mickaël Doucet's Art
Mickaël Doucet is a French artist based in Paris, known for his captivating use of vibrant colors and minimalist interiors. His work, primarily done in oil on canvas, creates bright and dynamic scenes that strike a perfect balance between precise geometric technique and playful hues.
Doucet's paintings often feature lush landscapes framed by modern structures with floor-to-ceiling windows. These expansive views invite viewers into a world where detailed interiors and stylish design meet breathtaking natural beauty. While the serene scenes capture attention, they also evoke deeper reflections about the human presence, the fragility of life, and the mysteries beyond.
Inspired by Plato's idea that "None may enter here if they are not a geometer," Doucet seeks to challenge this notion by blending geometric abstraction with the chaotic beauty of the natural world, seen through vast stained glass windows. His interiors become places of art and contemplation, blending philosophical ideas with beautiful, decorative elements.
What's more, Doucet's art uses oriental designs to blend smoothly with the landscape, making the scenery an important part of his work rather than just a background.
In Mickaël Doucet's paintings, viewers experience a transformation. They aren't just looking at a view; they feel like they become part of the scene. Doucet's vibrant and minimalist art offers a fresh take on contemporary life. His work is an exciting and thoughtful exploration of art and the human experience.
An inside look at Mickaël Doucet's Creative Inspiration and Process
What initially inspired you to pursue a career in art? Was there a specific experience or passion that sparked your artistic journey?
I was a second year mathematics and physical sciences student at university when I visited the Picasso Museum in Barcelona. I was deeply moved by all this pictorial power - all this genius and this emotion of “the other world”. I then started to become very interested in art, particularly in drawing.
I went to India for 6 months, where I met a young painter in Jaipur who convinced me to follow my karma, meaning to pursue a path of painting. I felt an intense inner fire and stopped everything to devote myself entirely to art. Since then, I have never stopped painting or even thinking about painting. It is the very essence of my life. I have never regretted this choice. I was 23 years old when I started my journey.
Which artists or art movements have had the most significant impact on your style? How have their techniques or philosophies influenced the development of your own style over time?
I have always been sensitive to technical and spiritual elevation in the artistic practice, which I find necessary and non-negotiable to progress. There is a form of intransigence that I find in [artists] that pushes me to surpass myself, and to evolve my style as I learn.
In 2012, I asked myself the question: “What does it mean to be a painter in the 21st century?”. In the years 2000-2010 in Paris, photography and more conceptual installations had pride of place at art fairs. We were overwhelmed with images, with advertising, the arrival of smartphones. It was then that artists like Lucio Fontana, who cut his paintings with a cutter, or Yves Klein, who had a completely empty exhibition, gave the impression that nothing was possible in art anymore. I told myself that if I couldn't innovate in technology, I was going to innovate in images! I decided to work with contemporary imagery, in a style that remains “classic”. This gave rise to a first series of interiors: Villégiatures. From then on, I never stopped representing villas by architects from the 70s, using a technique almost similar to that of Renaissance painters.
Living in a city known for its rich artistic history and contemporary art scene, how does Paris inspire or inform your artistic process? Do specific aspects of the city's culture, architecture, or atmosphere find their way into your paintings?
I have visited museums and art galleries in Paris a lot over the last 20 years, and [trained] my eye over the years. It's true that living in such a city full of art and history is undoubtedly a source of permanent inspiration. Even so, like any large capital, dense in population and urban life, it has a stifling and anxiety-provoking side. This side pushes me to work around interiors that open onto the sea or onto an idyllic elsewhere, places filled with colors and [offering an] escape that painting can provide.
This deeply French city endowed me with a very romantic spirit of painting. In the literary sense of the term: Romanticism is characterized by the dominance of sensitivity, emotion and imagination over reason and morality. Artists paint by asserting their ideas and passionately revealing their personal impressions and feelings through their works. I believe that this definition corresponds well to my work, even if there are of course many other things to say about it...
Walk us through your approach when beginning a new painting. From conceptualization to execution, what steps do you typically follow?
I always start with a preparatory sketch: My work is composition. As in a score of musical notes, I arrange the elements together to create a balance on the canvas. I have several notebooks full of ideas, sketches of works ready to paint. Once I have chosen, I trace this life-size sketch on the canvas, and I prepare my backgrounds according to the final colors that I already have in my head.
I generally have the finished canvas more or less in my mind before it is made. All the pleasure and the act of painting comes from the path on the canvas to get to [my vision]. Sometimes there are surprise accidents, but then the issue becomes even more interesting. It’s like a riddle that needs to be solved. It’s very exhilarating!
How do you select the colors that will convey the mood and message of your artwork?
I like to make little nods to other artists in my paintings. The cubes and spheres refer to The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. Each of the elements of my paintings – the African statuettes, the books, the Japanese prints etc. - leaves a message, a small trace. Like Matisse, I pay great attention to ensuring that there is a perfect balance for the eye, between all the elements. Each object is worked as if it were a spot of color within the colored space that I create. People often tell me that it’s because I studied mathematics that I am so square in my paintings!
As for color, it’s instinctive. I have always worked on drawing, you always have to work on it. The colors can also be worked on, but never for me. I have never been able to explain it. But color has never been an obstacle for me...It is the very essence of all my work. It’s through her that I feel everything. It is difficult to explain. But I would say that color is me. It's simple. It springs naturally to be the part closest to me, until finally it is just me I think.
Are there any themes or techniques you're eager to delve deeper into? How do you envision your artistic practice evolving in the coming years?
Yes, absolutely, there are so many things to explore. In terms of themes, I would say that I really want to try some slightly special still lifes, but it's still at the stage of an idea. I don't really know, it's difficult to see in advance towards what we will evolve. I reserve this surprise for myself.
I just know that color will always be my muse. That said, I am currently testing black and white work with charcoal on supports other than paper. But here too you will have to be a little patient. Don't go too quickly. Art and painting remain practices that develop over a long time.
Can you tell us about any exhibitions or events you have planned for 2024?
I had a first solo show in my Paris gallery, the Virginie Louvet Gallery, in February 2024. It went very well! I also had a solo show, Entre deux-mondes (Between Two Worlds), at the Diego Escobar gallery in Marseille. It ends mid-July and is going rather well if we consider the current situation in France. I have recently been working with the Palmer Gallery in Saint-Tropez, which is currently exhibiting around ten works for the summer.
In America, Emmanuelle G. Gallery in New York exhibited me in January at the Palm Beach art fair and we plan to present large paintings at Art Miami in December. I will also participate in a group show in September for the opening of a new gallery in Los Angeles, The New Yard Gallery with which I will start working in partnership with the Diego Escobar Gallery; A solo show is planned in LA in 2025.
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