At the sight of this view, time is of little importance. A minute becomes an hour and an hour becomes a minute. Soaking up the place, the light, the heat, the sounds... Only the present moment counts. Our warm skin caressed by the sun’s rays, the soft breeze that carries a salty smell, the landscape to be contemplated again and again without an ounce of weariness... Serenity is imposed in front of such a summer scene. Some people try to make it imperishable. Memories and photographs then give way to nostalgia. Waiting for last year... Adrien Belgrand’s work brings an extra soul, absent from any photograph, going so far as to transcend the memory to create a new experience. In The Art of Idleness, Herman Hesse describes the pleasure of this experience as the possibility of maintaining perfect inner serenity for hours on end, and of occupying one’s attention with seemingly insignificant things, such as the laws governing the flight of mosquitoes, the rhythmic oscillation of dust visible in the sun’s rays, the melodic movement of light waves. From this experience comes an increased amazement at the diversity of observable phenomena and a comforting, absolute oblivion of oneself... Like these special moments, it is possible to let oneself be invaded by the colour, the light and the texture that permeate Adrien Belgrand’s paintings. This touch of poetry incites contemplation, which in turn generates new sensations and plunges the viewer into the deep enjoyment produced by the futility of these moments. These paintings in turn become a moment suspended in time. Impatience disappears in favour of this pleasant idleness. Escape gives way to immersion. Adrien Belgrand’s works also have a more sociological aspect. Without any critical approach, they tell the story of the habbit of a period in search of time and serenity. This view of his time is reminiscent of Eugène Boudin’s beach scenes or Georges Seurat’s bathing. Adrien Belgrand’s works are nevertheless anchored in the current context by employing a resolutely contemporary point of view and style. Working from different photographs of the same place, Adrien Belgrand creates a synthesis of several moments that fascinate him. He is in his Parisian studio at the time. In search of the reflection of the sun on the turquoise water, of the rocks sparkling in the light, of wonder...

 

Thibaut Wauthion