Ludovic Thiriez - The boy from the neighbourhood;
The 4th Luxembourg Art Prize, an international prize for the emerging artist of the year, was held at the Pinacothèque in the presence of the Ambassador of France to Luxembourg, Bruno Perdu, and the Ambassador of the States in Luxembourg, Randy Evans.
This year, nearly 850 people attended the event to discover the works of the 12 finalist artists from all over the world: Brazil, Canada, Democratic Republic of Congo, England, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, the United States and Taiwan. Ludovic Thiriez, a 34-year-old French artist living in Budapest (Hungary) won the jury's preference. He won the €25,000 scholarship offered by the Pinacothèque.
The main theme of his work over the past five years has been childhood. He explores this period of life, its contrasts, its emotions, its transitions and its passions, which reflect our conditions of being human. Life is an accumulation of experiences and feelings. It is from this idea that the artist has found a process of creation in his painting. The idea is to superimpose different elements and styles in order to create a new balance.
Ludovic Thiriez spent his childhood dreaming. His parents always told him he had his minds flying in the clouds. Today with a certain distance, he draws on the imagination of his childhood and stories. His inspirations often come from old photos or from his own shots.
The use of embroidery and animals is quite common in his paintings. Embroidery refers to the transmission of knowledge between generations. In Hungary, where the artist currently lives, each region possessed its motives and style. The quality of the embroidery present in a house highlighted the qualities and know-how of the woman. This knowledge was passed from mother to daughter. Animals are part of the imagination of children and are very present in fairy tales. He uses it, without abusing it, as a symbol of narration for his own stories, they sometimes become characters in their own right.
Childhood is a fabulous mirror of humanity where one finds softness, play, violence, tenderness, vice, questions, love, etc. A raw material that time will shape. The child slowly becomes aware of his state of Man with great purity and naivety. It is this moment that the artist tries to capture in his work. Ludovic Thiriez observes this transition, selects his moments, delocalises his subjects to transcribe a sensation.
The painting presented during the group exhibition of the Luxembourg Art Prize 2018 is entitled « The boy from the neighbourhood », 130 x 170 cm, 2018, mixed techniques combining acrylic paint, ink and oil painting on linen. We see a group of children smiling and having fun, they laugh. There is also this little boy treated in a more abstract way: "the neighbor", he looks more on his guard and less reassured. Another child points to something outside the canvas, something that may have frightened the birds as well. And then this yellow line, a sketch, a temporary geometric construction, which stands in the middle of the swamp as in a dream that escapes and that will move on.
About the Luxembourg Art Prize
The Luxembourg Art Prize is awarded annually to an international emerging artist regardless of age, nationality or country of residence. This prize offers a real springboard to the professional artistic world. It allows all finalists to be part of an exclusive international network that helps them throughout their lives to create exhibition opportunities around the world. The Prize also includes a scholarship awarded each year to the laureate. For the 2018 edition, the scholarship awarded to the laureate amounts to €25,000.
About the Pinacothèque
The Pinacothèque is a private museum in Luxembourg (7 rue Michel Rodange, L-2430 Luxembourg) that presents two major art exhibitions a year, one from January to June and the other from September to December. The place is open to the public and admission is free. www.pinacotheque.lu
