Bernard Rancillac
Biography
Bernard Rancillac
(born in 1931, Paris, France)
Bernard Rancillac studied at the Atelier Met of Penninghen and became a drawing teacher. In parallel to his work as a teacher, he opened his art studio in Bourg-la-Reine (France) in 1955.
In the 1960s, after having experimented with abstraction, Bernard Rancillac, introduced colour and figuration in his paintings, thus aligning himself with the emerging Narrative Figuration movement. Thanks to his work, he was awarded at the Paris Biennale in 1961. In 1964, he organized the Mythologies quotidiennes exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art of Paris with Gérard Gassiot-Talabot and Hervé Télémaque, making his link with the Narrative Figuration official.
Bernard Rancillac?s paintings combine influences from movies, comics and photography, with formal innovations such as vinylic paint with a glazed finish, Plexiglas, fabric, or the cutting of paintings (Shattered Images). They create a strong impact for the viewer. Politically and socially involved, the artist wishes to transpose the urban reality and the world?s current affairs with a corrosive humor, through his cadenced paintings, with effective figures and bright colors.
Bernard Rancillac declars « I then understood that I was a political animal, not a mundane columnist ! At the root of any artistic creation, there is a need for an emotion. For me, it is often a politically charged emotion, even when I paint Mickey, jazz musicians, cars or movie stars. Journalists and photographers are more often present during the event, and quicker in their communication. The painter, on the other hand, has more time to work, to sink into the flesh of time. That is what we call history. »
Intense, critical, and loaded with emotion, Bernard Rancillac's work is the subject of many international exhibits.
Exhibitions selected
Solo Exhibitions
2017 - Rancillac, Rétrospective, Musée de la Poste - Espace Niemeyer, Paris
2016 - La peau du monde, galerie Jean Brolly, Paris
2015 - Rancillac « Récits », L'Aspirateur, Narbonne
2003 - Rétrospective, Musée d'Art moderne, Saint-Etienne
2001 - Morceaux choisis, Galerie Sonia Zannattacci, Genève
2000 - Rancillac, Palais des Congrès, Paris
1997 - Jazz, Galerie Hervé Lourdel, Paris
1996 - Extrême Occident, Villa Tamaris Pacha, La Seyne-sur-Mer
1989 - Cinémonde, Galerie 1900-2000, Paris
1985 - 20 ans de peinture, Institut français d'Athènes, Athènes
1980 - À la mémoire de... , Musée d'Art moderne de la ville de Paris, Paris
1977 - Les Années Vitamines, Galerie Krief, Paris
1969 - Pornographie, Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris
1965 - Bernard Rancillac : Série Walt Disney, Galerie Mathias Fels, Paris
1963 - Rancillac, Galerie La Roue, Paris
Groupe Exhibitions
2017 - Ailleurs est ici, École des Filles, Huelgoat
2008 - Figuration narrative, 1960-1972, Grand Palais, Paris.
2001 - Les Années Pop, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris
2000 - La Figuration Narrative, Musée d'Art de Reykjavik, Islande
1999 - Pop Impressions, Musée d'Art moderne, New-York
1997 - Pop 60, Centre culturel de Bellem, Portugal
1990 - Nouvelle Figuration, Galerie Schwartz, Los Angeles
1989 - Art en France, Musée national de Taïwan, Taipei
1977 - Mythologies quotidiennes II, Musée d'Art moderne de la ville de Paris, Paris
1975 - Paris- New-York, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris
1968 - Peinture en France 1900- 1967, National Gallery, Londres
1966 - Le Monde en question », Musée d'art moderne de la ville de Paris, Paris
1964 - Mythologies quotidiennes, Musée d'art moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris
1960 - Salon des réalités nouvelles, Paris
1958 - Salon de la Jeune Peinture, Musée d'Art moderne de la ville de Paris, Paris
Collections
Musée d'Art moderne de Saint-Etienne
Musée National d'Art moderne, Centre Georges-Pompidou, Paris
Musée d'Art moderne de la Ville de Paris, France
Musée d'Art moderne, New-York, Etats-Unis
Bibliography
2016 - B. Rancillac, Devenir peintre : journal 1956-1968, édition Hermann
2003 - S. Wilson, Bernard Rancillac, Rétrospective (1962-2002), éditions Fage/ Les presses du réel
2000 - B. Rancillac, Le regard idéologique, Rancillac, édition d'art Somogy
1994 - B. Rancillac, Voir et comprendre la peinture, édition Bordas
1991 - S. Fauchereau, Bernard Rancillac, éditions du Cercle d'art