Yvon Taillandier (1926-2018) "the Figures In Receipt" Gouache 55x44cm - Dated 1992

Yvon Taillandier (1926-2018) Gouache 1994 – 55 x 44 cm - FIGURES ON RECEIPT - Signed and dated within the composition 1992. The work was created on rent receipt paper, which accounts for its rarity and originality.

Yvon Taillandier (1926–2018) was a French painter, draftsman, sculptor, writer, and art critic, born in Paris on March 28, 1926, and died in Avignon on March 3, 2018. He spent part of his childhood in the Lyon region, where he showed early talent for drawing. From adolescence onward, his portraits attracted attention, and he exhibited for the first time in 1942 in Lyon, at only 16 years old. After the Second World War, he settled in Paris and frequented the great artists of his time, such as Giacometti, Braque, Miró, and Soulages, who profoundly influenced his artistic vision.

In the 1950s, he largely put his painting practice on hold to devote himself to writing and art criticism. He contributed to the magazine Connaissance des Arts for over a decade. He published numerous books on the great masters (Cézanne, Monet, Rodin, etc.). At the same time, he became a central figure at the Salon de Mai, serving as its secretary for over 40 years.

From the late 1960s and 1970s onward, he returned fully to artistic creation and developed a highly personal style. His work is characterized by: a free, colorful, and spontaneous figuration; a constant blend of text and image; an imaginary universe called "Taillandier-Land," populated by recurring characters and symbols. He himself speaks of "liberating figuration," emphasizing the freedom of gesture and imagination.

Taillandier occupies a unique place in 20th-century art: a precursor of free figuration (before Combas or Di Rosa), close to Art Brut in its spontaneous and narrative nature; a complete artist combining painting, writing, poetry, and objects. His work is exhibited internationally and also includes monumental works and interventions in public spaces.