EVERYONE’S GAUGUIN CAMPING

Marie Deboissy’s self-professed love for caravans and the outdoors shows in her gentle, subtle paintings. The artist uses trailer park settings to explore themes of childhood and adolescence, a period when experience is intensified and imprinted into innocent souls, defining them irreversibly for all time. Join us today on this trip with Marie to learn about her creative approach and influences.

Growing up in Guadeloupe and Bordeaux, how have your background and the natural spaces of your upbringing influenced your artistic style and the themes you explore in your artwork?

 

Having grown up in the Caribbean and in a very sunny region near the ocean in southwest France, my driving force is definitely the Sun! I think this is reflected in the colors I use and the moods I try to convey in my films and drawings. I’ve always lived in wide open spaces, surrounded by vegetation, which have always had a huge influence on my work. Today, I even live in a tiny house in the countryside… which is probably the logical consequence of my pronounced taste for caravans and camping, as you can see in my work!

La Fièvre au Soleil (Sun’s Fever)

Oscar, 17, spends his summer with his mother and Marianne, who is thirty years older than him. This summer, an ardent desire emerges at Oscar for Marianne.

In this short film, I tried to capture the atmosphere of my childhood campsites in the southwest of France. For me, summer is a time of firsts, a time of adventure and risk-taking, when emotions run high. The themes of adolescence and new experiences are important to me, as emotions are heightened tenfold and nothing else is important but what you’re experiencing. That’s why I tell the story from Oscar’s point of view. The character of Marianne was inspired by Dalida’s song Il venait d’avoir 18 ans, which I find very touching for its fragility and the honesty of a forbidden love story. I wanted to show and make a declaration of love to the archetypal mature, free woman who allows herself to be tempted by the budding love of a young man. All this in an atmosphere that tends to be light and dreamy, in a vacation setting.

Your graduation film, “La Fièvre au Soleil” (Sun’s Fever), received recognition in several international festivals. Can you share the inspiration behind this film and what messages or emotions you aimed to convey through its storytelling?


In this short film, I tried to capture the atmosphere of my childhood campsites in the southwest of France. For me, summer is a time of firsts, a time of adventure and risk-taking, when emotions run high. The themes of adolescence and new experiences are important to me, as emotions are heightened tenfold and nothing else is important but what you’re experiencing. That’s why I tell the story from Oscar’s point of view. The character of Marianne was inspired by Dalida’s song Il venait d’avoir 18 ans, which I find very touching for its fragility and the honesty of a forbidden love story. I wanted to show and declare love to the archetypal mature, free woman who allows herself to be tempted by the budding love of a young man. All this in an atmosphere that tends to be light and dreamy, in a vacation setting.

The aesthetics of the French Nouvelle Vague, 19th and 20th century painting, as well as the American realist movement, are mentioned as major influences on your creations. How do these artistic movements inform your work, and how do you incorporate their elements into your unique graphic style?

My two main passions are cinema and painting. To combine these two disciplines, I chose to develop myself in the world of animated film. The framing, tone and highly “illustrative” composition of shots by directors such as Jean-Luc Godard and Eric Rohmer can be seen as influences in my stagings. Otherwise, my reference painters, such as Paul Gauguin, David Hockney and Joseph Nodorer essentially work landscapes or scenes of life in a way that I find very touching. Like them, I aspire to interpret reality through my graphic style, while remaining highly accessible and relatable. I also draw inspiration from American realist literature, such as John Steinbeck, Russell Banks or Daniel Ray Pollock. They depict the human condition in a tragic yet tender way, a tone that I intend to give to my work and which touches me deeply. I like to focus my work on the characters and work on their psychology with emotion and humanity.

Colour plays a significant role in your artwork. Can you discuss its importance in your artistic expression and how you use it to evoke certain emotions or atmospheres?

When I look at an image, the first things I notice and appreciate are the colors and atmosphere that emanate from it. With my training as a painter and illustrator, I create an image above all by superimposing masses of color. The artist who has touched me the most for many years is Paul Gauguin, who, in my opinion, handles color like no one else!

Your artwork encompasses moments in life, emotions, and beauty found in the tragic, ordinary, and pathetic. Could you elaborate on the themes and narratives you explore through your creations and what draws you to portray these aspects of human experience?

Generally speaking, the “Trailer Park” series of digital paintings is a good illustration of this. I like to show scenes of ordinary life and concentrate on the characters and what they are experiencing. In this particular series, I imagine a series of scenes and characters that evolve in their own universe. I try to capture the beauty and sensitivity of fictional people who live in run-down areas or American trailer parks. Those characters could be considered “white trash” and show in their attitude and look a story and an emotion that intrigues. Always inspired by the theme of childhood and adolescence, they are often the subject of my paintings. I want to show innocence, life ahead and the first moments involved in these moments. With their serious, lascivious poses, there’s a kind of gravity and nonchalance that contrasts with the joy and naivety of childhood.

Trailer Park, a series of digital paintings

In this series of digital paintings, I drew inspiration from novels and authors such as Steinbeck (A l’est D’Eden), Russel Banks (Trailer Park) and Daniel Ray Pollock (Knockenstiff). In a very free way, I imagine a series of scenes and characters that could evolve in these universes. I try to capture the beauty and sensitivity of fictional characters who live in run-down areas or American trailer parks, characters who could be considered “white trash” and who show in their attitude and look a story and an emotion that intrigues. Always inspired by the theme of childhood and adolescence, they are often the subject of my paintings. I want to show innocence, life ahead and first times involved in these moments of life. With their serious, lascivious poses, there’s a kind of gravity and nonchalance that contrasts with the joy and naivety of childhood.

Looking forward, do you have any upcoming projects or goals that you are excited about? Are there any specific themes or techniques you are planning to explore in your future artistic journey?

Today, I’m writing and working on several personal short-film projects, while continuing to work as an art director in animated films. At the same time, I’m also oil painting and preparing exhibitions to continue developing my graphic world!

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Bio

Marie Deboissy grew up under the sun of Guadeloupa and Bordeaux (France). She graduated from the Atelier Supérieur d’Animation in Paris in 2019, where she made her graduation film La Fièvre au Soleil (Sun’s Fever), selected in several international festivals. Inspired by the natural spaces in which she grew up, she works mainly with color in realistic compositions tinged with mystery and oneirism. The aesthetics of the French Nouvelle Vague, XIX and XX century painting (as Paul Gauguin, David Hockney, Felix Valloton…) and the American realist movement have a major influence on her creations. She recounts moments in life, emotions and beauty in the tragic, the ordinary and the pathetic. As well as making and art directing animated films, she develops her own graphic universe, notably through oil painting.

Credits

Artist/ Marie Deboissy @mariedeboissy

https://deboissymarie.wixsite.com/marie-deboissy

Interview / Markéta Kosinová

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