Anatomie n°IV 2003

Iseult Labote created Anatomie n°IV, which measures 120 by 80 centimeters, probably with oil and maybe some resins or polymers or something! I can imagine Labote in her studio, pushing and pulling the paint across the canvas. It’s all about these horizontal gestures, like she's raking the surface, building up layers of this luminous, watery blue. I wonder what she was thinking as she made those marks? Was it a slow, meditative process, or a flurry of activity? Maybe she was thinking of the sea or sky, or maybe she was just getting lost in the materiality of the paint itself. The texture seems really important here, doesn’t it? Thin layers building up, creating a kind of shimmering, almost translucent effect. It reminds me a bit of Gerhard Richter's squeegee paintings, but with a softer, more fluid touch. Like so many painters, Labote is in conversation with the past, pushing painting in a new direction. It’s about finding freedom in the process, letting the paint lead the way, and embracing those happy accidents along the way.