Aphrodite, Jouissance de l'espace 1975

René Duvillier made this gestural painting with big, confident strokes of red and black paint. I can imagine him, brush loaded, making that single, arcing sweep of red, and then coming back down to create the dark center. What I like about this painting is how immediate it feels; it's less about representation and more about the pure joy—jouissance, as he titled it—of applying paint to paper. I wonder if Duvillier was thinking about the female form, or perhaps the idea of creation itself, when he made this. You know, the title 'Aphrodite' adds another layer, connecting the painting to ideas of love, beauty, and the life force. It reminds me of other painters who use simple gestures to express complex feelings, like Franz Kline, or even some of Joan Mitchell’s more pared-down works. In the end, it's about the artist joining the conversation, adding their voice to the ongoing exploration of what painting can be.