Gérard WILLEMENOT

Gérard WILLEMENOT arrived on this planet on 11th February 1943. At that time, the three wise men were dressed in grey-green and devastated the world under the leadership of a little man with a moustache and strange hair style. As the eldest son in a family of nine children, Willemenot's childhood was not a fairy tale. His school years were chaotic and, very soon, despite - or because of - his multiple gifts, he entered into conflict with the National Education Board. This conflict still exists and will probably only stop with his death. Nevertheless, he obtained various diplomas as art designer and architect, a profession he pursued erroneously for many years. Willemenot wanted to reinvent the world and failed in the attempt.

His childhood and years as an architect made him a chronic maladjusted who did not like his period. Therefore, since he could not reinvent the world, he decided to paint it in a somewhat outdated, almost timeless, manner. One must remember that for nearly a century, paintings at that time were discussed solely by the intellectual media, and it was not uncommon for an art critic to write eight pages about a virgin canvas entitled "Without Title No. 12" or a fly dropping on canvas entitled "Opus No. ". For a long time, this intellectual masturbation has erased all former values considered old and decadent, such as composition, craftsmanship, creativity, etc... to praise modern and new values only. A modern approach is great of course... an artist's crap is beautiful, more so if it is the most recent one, that of the Day! Yesterday, he did not make any, he was constipated!

Technique and themes

The painting of Willemenot is simple. It is a painting style that is dying out, called "à la Tempéra" (which he created himself). To concoct this dish, you must add an inordinate love for the Middle-Ages and its mysticism, gradually include two hundred grammes of fantastic literature from your childhood (the Lovecraft type), and add a pinch of cartoon strip. Serve it with lots of humour, a little love for humanity, and, alas, the omnipresence of death around the plate.

This technique requires a lot of work. To motivate you, get yourself a woman that you will love, children (preferably fathered by your good self) and a good tax collector (good ones can be found nearly everywhere).

This outdated and timeless painting style is very popular with the Anglo-Saxons and people of the medical profession who suspect that the artist, under the disguise of real imagination, is somewhat deranged or a user of forbidden substances.

The works of G. Willemenot can be found nearly everywhere in the world and its immediate surroundings, as well as in some galleries in France and abroad.



Gérard Willemenot nait le 11 février 1943.

La guerre mondiale et la déportation de son père à Mauthausen marqueront fortement son enfance. Il est le fils aîné d’une famille de neuf enfants. Très tôt rentré en conflit avec l’éducation nationale, il fera des études artistiques, sortira décorateur des Arts Appliqués puis deviendra Architecte DPLG et Urbaniste, métiers qu’il exercera par erreur pendant vingt cinq ans !
Son enfance et ses années d’architecture feront de lui un inadapté chronique qui n’aime guère son époque. Ne parvenant pas à refaire le monde, il va le peindre à sa manière, décalée et intemporelle. Willemenot n’aime pas la peinture dite contemporaine qu’il considère comme un canular institutionnel.

La peinture de Willemenot est simple. Il s’agit de peinture dite «à la tempera» (qu’il fabrique lui-même). Cette technique, en voie de disparition, sera cuisinée avec un amour immodéré pour le Moyen-Âge et sa mystique auxquels il convient d’ajouter l’influence de quelques grands anciens comme Jérôme Bosch, Breughel ou Patinir mais aussi celle de peintres contemporains comme Albert Drachkovitch ou Jacques Poirier qu’il a bien connus et admirés, tous deux artistes hors du temps.
Son oeuvre aborde essentiellement les thèmes de l’Amour, l’Humour et de la Mort.

Les oeuvres de Gérard Willemenot sont présentes chez de nombreux collectionneurs un peu partout dans le monde et ses abords immédiats, ainsi que dans quelques galeries en France et à l’étranger.