Mathieu Wernert is a contemporary French artist, recognized for his abstract works. His work is characterized by a bold use of colors and shapes, exploring the relationships between perception and visual interpretation.
The contemporary nature of Mathieu Wernert’s works does not lie solely in their belonging to a temporally defined historical sequence (the contemporary as something chronologically situated in the present time), nor simply in the choice of forms, materials, or artistic mediums used in his work (the contemporary as a set of specific artistic forms and means; after all, we are dealing with abstract paintings here !). Above all, it is in the relationship that the artist maintains with his own time that the contemporary character of Mathieu Wernert’s art resides. In the face of the overwhelming presence of reactionary discourses, the nostalgic celebrations of an idealized and forever lost past, Wernert presents himself, first and foremost, without any complex and in an extremely refreshing way, as a man of his time. That is why he embodies the complete opposite of the «non-contemporary» or the apostle of decadence, hu- man forms that are sadly so widespread today. While this is certainly not to say that there is no legitimate admiration for the past (quite the opposite !), it is also important to realize that living in the past is to condemn oneself to being surpassed by one’s own time.
Thus, those who love their time know how to worry about it, and those who live in the present know how to feel the unsettling strangeness of what seems self-evident. Each painting by Mathieu Wernert is therefore an extremely complex and meticulous composition, inexhaustible in a sense. In the face of this seemingly paradoxical nature of the richness and poverty of images from the present, Wernert’s work appears to be the result of a passionate and fierce desire to express this world of images in all their newfound strength, as well as a determination not to be deceived by them.
These works, created using mixed media combining stickers, felt-tip pens, and ink, reflect a spontaneous and experimental artistic approach, where the constraint of forced folding becomes a driving force for creativity.
These drawings offer a unique glimpse into a timeless period, where art becomes a reflection of introspection and a renewed need for expression.
