​ARTIST STATEMENT​

 

I have been painting images inspired by cinema for about three decades, frequently returning to the works of Jean-Luc Godard, to the point where my practice could be considered obsessive.

I am fascinated by Godard, because although he was not the first of the French New Wave (Nouvelle Vague) directors (key figures also include François Truffaut, Agnès Varda, Claude Chabrol, Éric Rohmer, and Jacques Rivette) —his film "Breathless" marked a significant moment for the movement. 

 

This movement was characterized by critics-turned-directors who revolutionized cinema through experimental techniques, handheld cameras, jump cuts, and location shooting, and how, specifically in his film "Breathless", Godard employs these various camera angles—from the Wide Shot (or Long Shot) to the Medium Shot, Close-Up, and Extreme Close-Up—as well as fast edits and dissolves to create a sense of mounting tension.

My 2005 project, simply titled "Breathless" featured 20 paintings inspired by the director’s homage to American gangster films. My 2014 project, "Seeing Seberg," was also inspired by "Breathless". Each oil painting in this series celebrates the actress Jean Seberg in her memorable role as 'Patricia'.  

I continue to paint excerpts from "Breathless" primarily because of the film's striking grainy black-and-white aesthetic, its fantastic compositions, the raw beauty of its actors, and its unfiltered representation of complex masculinity, as well as the film's semiotic-rich storyline, which addresses themes of attraction, death, and immortality, while also examining the burgeoning relationship between cinema and other art forms and presentation systems.

My newest work explores the first four minutes of the 1960 film originally titled "À bout de souffle" (literally means 'without breath'), which introduces viewers to the hero/anti-hero Michel Poiccard, played by French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo.

The character, Poiccard, with the help of an unnamed female accomplice, steals a car from an unsuspecting couple, hot-wires it, and speeds away, only to be pursued by motorcycle cops along the road from Marseille to Paris.

During his close encounter with law enforcement, Michel discovers a gun hidden in the glove compartment of the stolen vehicle. He uses this gun to shoot and kill one of the pursuing officers before narrowly escaping.

The first four minutes reveal the narrative primarily from Michel's point of view, while viewers also experience a voyeuristic perspective from inside the car. They witness his discovery of the gun, his unintended, but successful shot, and his urgent need to flee from the police.

A significant part of the opening narrative centers around a modern young woman who scouts the car for Michel to steal. Though her appearance is brief, it drives the story's progression. Despite not receiving credit in the film, the unnamed actress delivers a captivating performance, as the film relies on her agency to propel the narrative forward.

 

I confess to having gotten carried away, as the project took on a life of its own... I had meant to paint 5 or 6 small paintings, but at this point, my 2026 project consists of 3 large canvases, 66 small paintings, and a video. 

 

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