Futaie

 
A masterpiece by Jean Paul Riopelle, Futaie stands out for the scale of its composition, which rises like the rose window of a cathedral. The imagery that unfolds here is akin to an intimate vision of the boreal forest, as suggested by the title. A futaie is a cluster of tall trees, or, in other words, trees that have reached the point of maturity—a quality that also emanates from this painting. The tremendous sense of momentum Riopelle injected into this piece, which is part of an exceptional body of work from 1966, was praised by the art critic Yves Michaud, who wrote: “The way its forms gradually appear, superimposed over a profusion of smaller strokes, confers a secondary structure upon the work and brings it progressively closer to figuration.” This analysis is particularly striking in Futaie, in which, Michaud continues, “a drawing is overlaid on a network of coloured markings.”
 
Here, Riopelle plunges back into his reveries on nature, wielding his palette knife like a scythe cutting its way through a field. Rhythmically punctuated by a profusion of agile touches, the work captures all of twilight’s intensity, like the setting sun at the end of a long hunting trip. It leads us down a path crowned by tangled branches as a swirling, sparkling stream gurgles past, before opening onto a natural clearing, “une clairière infuse” to borrow Pierre Schneider’s beautiful phrase. Riopelle’s rich, high-contrast palette is dominated by a register of warm and cool colours that are heightened against a velvety black background. Once more, the mosaic-like touches, very typical of his work from the 1950s, gradually unravel to give way to suppler, creamier impastos. Finally, a robust structure delineates a large portion of the composition, giving it perfect balance. With this renewed energy, Futaie marks the beginning of a prolific period for Riopelle, whose creative output would soon soar.
 
In the summer of 1994, the Parisian gallery Didier Imbert Fine Art presented an exhibition titled Riopelle: Les années soixante, in which Futaie was shown alongside a selection of other oil paintings and works on paper from the 1960s.
 
(Annie Lafleur)