François, a mentor of mine, is having several exhibitions in his native Aix-en-Provence this summer. I regret not being able to get over for them, alas. (but maybe in September)
He was a student of Leo Marchutz, as I was back in the early 1970's when I first met François.
He, had of course known Leo back in the early 1960's I believe (or late fifties). I was the 'last wave' of students to study with Leo on a daily basis before he died in January of 1976.
François's work is so very important, as he continues a line which he believes essential in the history of European painting. He works exclusively from 'the motif', that is to say outside in Nature (for him, the visible world). My feeling about his paintings is that essentially, they are done 'from Nature' in order to be signposts leading us (the viewers) back to Nature itself. And of course, he follows in the great tradition of landscape painting. He might see it differently, but nonetheless, he is a remarkable man. I hope 'les Aixois' give him the respect he is certainly due.
I am coordinating a California State University painting program in Southern France this summer and I am trying to find contact info for Francois de Asis to see if he might be willing to provide an artist lecture for our students. We are studying the rise of modern painting in the region and are looking for an guest artist who still values the principles forged by many of the early modern painters. Any help you might provide would be greatly appreciated. Andrew Dickson - adickson@fullerton.edu
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