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Francis Berthault:  Slowness and Interpretation

Francis Berthault’s paintings draw us into a world where contemplation is essential, far from the fast-paced consumption of images that characterizes our era. In a world dominated by immediacy, his works remind us of the importance of taking time—to look, to immerse oneself, and to explore the visual stories they offer.

Stories to Unveil
Each of Berthault’s canvases is a complex narrative, a visual tale that slowly reveals itself. He invites us to relearn how to look, to slow down, and to let ourselves be captivated by the mysteries and details of his work. This gaze requires independence and curiosity, far from the expectations shaped by contemporary society.

Dreamlike Realism
Berthault’s art resides between dream and reality, embracing a poetic, dreamlike realism. His scenes, though figurative, are imbued with an atmosphere that distances them from mere representation of the world, evoking instead an inner reality where the strange merges with the everyday.

A Poetic Language: Between Word and Image
Berthault integrates language in a unique way within his works. Words, often enigmatic and embedded in the painting, add an additional dimension. They blur boundaries, play with multiple meanings, and enrich the work’s depth. Rejecting fixity, Berthault constantly explores new forms and ideas. His work, dynamic and rich in ambiguity, invites continual rediscovery.

Francis Berthault’s art—combining poetry, dreamlike vision, and subtle humor—is an invitation to an intellectual and sensory journey, where the viewer is free to explore, interpret, and be surprised.

Berthault’s works are far more than images to be seen; they are worlds to explore, stories to experience, where each gaze becomes a new reading, a new interpretation, a new journey.

Dreamlike Realism
Berthault’s art lies at the boundary between the real and the imaginary. While he adopts a figurative approach, his realism is infused with dreamlike qualities that set it apart from traditional realism. The scenes he depicts, though recognizable and grounded in a certain reality, are imbued with a poetic atmosphere that distances them from any mimetic representation of the world. His works do not aim to capture reality as it is, but rather to evoke an inner reality—a poetic universe where the strange and the marvelous blend with the everyday.

Berthault’s Poetic Language: Between Word and Image
One of the most striking aspects of Berthault’s work is the way he integrates language into his paintings. Words are not merely titles, annotations, or fragments of collage; they are part of the artwork itself, becoming an integral element of the image. This fusion of word and image places Berthault within a tradition that harkens back to the “language of the birds”—a poetic and esoteric form where words, through sound and associative play, generate multiple layers of meaning.

The “language of the birds,” with its wordplay, double meanings, and hidden resonances, finds an echo in Berthault’s work, as he delights in blurring codes and expectations. His often-enigmatic titles guide the viewer even as they mislead, adding an extra layer of mystery to the work. They are both keys and traps—elements that reinforce the idea that each image may hold an infinity of interpretations. This approach also recalls the Surrealists, for whom language was a means to liberate the imagination, to transcend immediate reality and access deeper, more ambiguous truths.

Derision as Resistance
This element of subtle derision is also a form of resistance against singular interpretation. By playing with the viewer’s expectations, Berthault encourages an active, critical reading of his works. The viewer is invited to seek out doubles, hidden echoes, and alternative meanings that enrich understanding without ever locking the artwork into a definitive interpretation.

A Work in Constant Motion
This refusal of fixity, this affinity for ambiguity and the playful act of interpretation, lies at the heart of Francis Berthault’s work. Far from settling into a single formula, his art remains in constant motion—a continuous exploration of new forms, new ideas, new relationships between word and image. It is this dynamism, this ongoing push against the limits of representation and meaning, that gives his work its extraordinary vitality and depth.

Antoine Balabert – 2023