Jean michel folon biography of donald
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Title:Don't
Artist:Jean-Michel Folon (Belgian, Uccle 1934–2005 Monaco)
Date:1979
Medium:Watercolor and graphite on paper
Dimensions:11 1/2 x 9 in. (29.2 x 22.9 cm)
Classification:Drawings
Credit Line:Gift of the artist, 1990
Object Number:1990.95.5
Rights and Reproduction:© Estate of the artist
Inscription: Signed (lower right, in brown ink): Folon; signed, dated, and inscribed (verso, in graphite and black ink): Paroles / Jacques Prévert[underlined] / Il ne fait pas[underlined] / Folio–Gallimard / page 216 / Folon / Juin 1979
the artist, Beaumont-du-Gâtinais, France and Monaco (1979–90; his gift to MMA)
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Folon's Folons," March 27–June 3, 1990, no. 24 (lent by the artist).
Barcelona. Fundació Caixa Catalunya. "Folon," September 22–November 21, 1993, no. 27 (as "Il ne faux pas").
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From the Heart of Europe
A couple of months ago, Anne and I went to the Fondation Folon in La Hulpe to see the art of Jean-Michel Folon on display. Like all other indoor cultural attractions, the Fondation is closed at the moment; but if you're in central Belgium and you feel like sampling his work, you can see a number of his sculptures on display at Villers Abbey, no reservation necessary, last admission at 4pm, get there before 21 February.
The biggest of the installations is the Alley of Thoughts, eight sculptures from the late 1990s, set up in the nave of the ruined Abbey church.
In the south transept you'll find Folon's Everyman as a guardian angel.
In the gardens he is carrying fish.
There are real fish too.
Like all of us, he's ready for a journey.
But what's in his case? The journey itself?
Or the destination? (Note the birds flying out of the suitcase towards me.)
This was Folon's final sculpture.
Even without Folon, the abbey is tremendously atmospheric.
It's only 45 minutes by car from Brussels, and for a bonus you can take a short detour to the Pierre-Qui-Tourne at Court-Saint-Étienne. Well worth a trip in these darker times.
Related
« Less is more. » — Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Once again, my initial instinct when I hit upon the notion of showcasing the work of Jean-Michel Folon was: « is he too obvious a subject? ». Then reason stepped in with: « to whom, exactly? »
Which brings me to my own tiny Folon anecdote: about twenty years ago, I was helping out a friend, who usually took off the month of January to travel. As it happened, it was usually the worst month for art freelancers, at least in my experience, so he was helping me out too.
Anyway, instead of working from home or some ad agency’s offices, I would work from his boutique, manning the four telephone lines while his regular employees handled the in-person traffic. One day, I took an order from a nice lady who, while I was filling out the relevant papers, gave her last name as Folon. « Like the illustrator? », I asked. « Yes indeed, he’s my cousin! », she replied, clearly delighted. « I’ve been living here in Canada for thirty years, and you’re the first person who’s ever asked! ». Which goes to show that one should think twice before extrapolating from one’s familiarity with a given subject. Or to put it simply, just because you’ve heard of someone, don’t assume everyone else does… whether they should have or not.
I can’t make mention of Folon without bringing up his strongest formative influences, Saul Steinberg (1914-1999) and André François (1915-2005); we’ll return to these gentlemen in due time.
To put it succinctly, Steinberg brought greater graphic and thematic purity to the gag cartoon… by dispensing with the gag, at least in the traditional sense. Not everyone dared to follow that perilous path, but Folon did, and similarly thrived.
Born in Brussels in 1934, Folon initially studied architecture, but soon detoured into drawing and never returned to his early vocation, though he certainly erected his share of edifices… on paper. He timidl
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