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Michel LARIVIERE - Painter
Video Interview by Luis Porquet

Painting is like a long journey

[...] An artist's reading material is never the product of chance. It allows us to penetrate the deep meaning behind their approach. If Larivière's thinking has been influenced by Teilhard de Chardin, it is because he recognised in him both a master and a guide, not only in the scientific domain, but, and perhaps more importantly, in the metaphysical sphere. What exactly does Teilhard tells us: he helps us understand how all of creation is forever being drawn towards a higher level of consciousness and that Man himself is nothing but an arch bending towards the riverside of infinity. This need to expand, this ineffable call, corresponds to what Larivière describes as infinite extroversion. Because his own life was many-faceted and varied (he demands diversity in abundance), this man, today at the height of his career, cannot be made to remain confined. Gifted with an enquiring mind, he could have shone in many areas of work. In contrast to some painters who cannot see further than the edge of their easels, Larivière keeps a vigilant watch on the world. [...]

As a flamboyant water-colour artist, he could have contented himself with repeating what he knew how to do. But the sensation of life was too strong. The things that he conveys to us are not so much wanted as revealed. They speak to us of a beyond that begins here and now. Every being bears darkness on his shoulders and holds light in his arms, Lao Tzu, the old Chinese master, teaches us. Painting is also a way of casting out darkness.

Luis PORQUET, art critic

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