Jacquot reconstruit

This exhibition project reconstructs the work of Jacques Weinberger (Jacquot), which was completely destroyed in the end of the 1950s by a fire in his studio. The artist who wrongly fell into oblivion carried out an absolutely descret interpretation of Tachism and Informal Painting. The staging encloses 14 well-chosen works as well as a detailed curriculum vitae displayed on a panel.

The blue Ballerina (Mon Chéri)

Reconstruction 2013/14 · acrylic paint on canvas · 180 x 200 cm

Portrait Joseph Pickler I

Reconstruction 2013/14 · gouache on cardboard · 70 x 100 cm

Portrait Kalman M. Kaschtan I

Reconstruction 2013/14 · gouache on cardboard · 70 x 100 cm

Monochrome blue Ballerina III (dedicated to Yves Klein)

Reconstruction 2013/14 · gouache on vat paper · 68 x 98 cm

Jacquot reconstruit

„Jacquot takes a small Japanese toy, a battery-operasted ship or car or something similar, whose special feature is that it turns around as soon as it bumps into an obstacle. He cleverly puts his paintbrush in the rear of the ship, which runs now all over the canvas on the floor and turns every time, as soon as it bumps against the frame. Jacquot carefully watches the hard-working toy.“

Jacquot is a character from Ephraim Kishon‘s play „Pull Out the Plug, the Water is Boiling!“: An artist who paints his pictures by battery-operated toys.

Possibly Jean Tinguelys „Meta-Matics“ or Akira Kanayamas „Remote control paintings“ served Kishon as an example for Jacquots painting manner. But while Kishon with his piece tries to make fun of the contemporary art business and to let its participants stand out as swindlers and charlatans, the works produced with Weinbergers painting manner – regardless of Kishons views – develop an own quality absolutely equal to that of the Informal Painting.

In this exhibition, the fictitious character Jacquot shows up against the extremely conservative world view of his own creator. Thus Jacquot says in a conversation with a studio colleague: „Do you really believe I would not know that this small ship cannot draw at all? That it is only a simple Japanese toy? I know this well enough. But, nevertheless, this toy could be able to scribble something that you, Mister, would never ever manage with your own two hands. Because you depend on your intellect and the ship just doesn’t need to care about this. Do you understand what I mean?“

It can’t be said with firmness how this exhibition is recognized by the single viewer. But nevertheless, one thing is sure: With this staging, Jacquot has survived his own creator.