Ornamentation

I do not know if my love for ornamentation and excessive decoration comes from my oriental upbringing, where women (from any social background) always have to present well; nails are always neatly painted, hair always tamed sophisticated and straighten. Surely my wild curly hair must have been and eccentricity.

I always felt that in Lebanon, stepping outside of your home is synonym of parading. Taking your most expensive, flashy or valuable ornament, the same way a peacock would when opening its tail to begin its dance.

Or maybe is it because of my Christian Greek orthodox heritage, recognizable by its very opulent churches, with golden arabesques everywhere, patterns everywhere. Chalices with beautifully inlaid gems, intricately decorated reliquaries etc…

Whichever it is, the ornamental or should I say “decorative” part of my work always intervenes as a way of counterbalancing the abject.

Being fascinated with this idea that the skin is a “beautiful” soft surface that holds everything else (not as beautiful) in place.

I see my ornamentations as that “girly” element. A bit like tying a nice red bow around a pile of crap, or even the way relics are presented; piles of bones or teeth the belong to someone that is now a rotting corpse, placed in the middle of a precious, overly decorated box.

It is with no surprise that I place outsider art at the heart of what I call ornamentation.

Far from thinking that Outsider art is ornamental, or decorative, I made an observation after long and obsessive researches on the subject; a lot of these works have in common their heavy ornamental qualities and repetitive patterns.

I would say that obsessive and repetitive are almost synonym; in the repetition of the gesture, the hand adopting the same position, same pressure on the pen to repeat indefinitely the same shape over and over and over, until turning into obsession.

Maybe it is the fact that patterns are easily accessible drawings, or maybe it is because like in the making of a mandala (that only consists of patterns) there is a certain meditative quality to pattern making. We get lost because the gesture is the same, and the hand almost ends up moving on its own, the muscle having absorbed its designated movement.

What is sure, is that, although easily execute, when made compulsively and in big number, patterns always end up having an impressive quality. They are the things that give the ornamental aspect to a drawing.

Small, intricate, and close to each other, patterns can sometimes look like lace, carvings or precious gems.

Augustin Lesage, (like many art brut artists) explained that his paintings were guided by spirits who were the ones who encouraged him and even guided him through his artistic process. Placing yourself on the side of those who believe or those who don’t has not much importance, the only thing that everyone could agree on, is the transcendental quality of his work. In his shapes, we can see insectoid shapes as well architectural ones. His works transports us in as many dimensions as there are layers.

In July 2019, Les halles saint pierre in Paris (a gallery that showcases outsider art), was giving an exhibition entitled “Chicago, foyer de l’art brut” (Chicago, home for Art brut).

And once again what struck me, was the immediacy of the art I had in front of my eyes.

Immediate not only because of this unstoppable desire to create, that seeps out from all the works’ pores, but also by the (simplicity of) materials that were used. By that I mean, every single random things we could find in our homes. From newspaper and magazine pages, to beer caps, can, but also gadgets and kids’ toys. Exit the pretentiousness of “noble” material. It was a refreshing way of seeing that art

I noticed that a lot of outsider artist would have this desire of expanding their art to their living space itself. Architecture is usually something that is thought to be something that has a practical outcome. It is often straightforward, clean and “contained”. But around the world exits some sites where the architecture feels like a growing being, or as if art has been invading the home, not only inside but on the face, influencing the shape itself into odd unusual shapes.

Niki de St Phalle’s Tarot Garden is maybe of the only sites I can think off that takes this form but that is not considered outsider. And here again what strikes us is that ornamental quality. Colourful mosaic covers every singe inch of the place and even the interior. It is not scene like a home anymore, but more like a gigantic work of art in which one could technically live.

The theme is mystical, the tarot and it only makes sense that the work en up taking an extravagant, flashy and heavily decorated style.

No spiritual (or religious) subject was ever approached with a minimalistic, simplistic way. The decorative process is long and intricate and gives justice to its theme.