CONNOISSEURSHIP

I bought a work of art the other day.

It was nothing special, just a drawing, but I discovered in it a quality one rarely comes across these days.

Chantal DeMauri-Faure, 2015

Sincerity.

But not just that.

There was something unique about this work, something almost embarrassing and therefore irredeemably uncool.

The work was an unabashed tribute to process and craft which in no small measure was due to its unmistakably feminine touch. Though neither sentimental nor cliché, the drawing suggested to me a more innocent age when being merely clever was conceptually inadequate in sustaining a body of work.

Berthe Morisot

It was as if the artist had channeled the likes of Morisot, Porter and Micah Carpentier.

The artist's name is Chantal DeMauri-Faure and she lives in Ghent where she teaches design at the Instituut Voor Niet Erg Fijn Kunst (IVNEFK).

I considered buying a second drawing but honestly, it was way over-priced.

Chantal DeMauri-Faure, 2015

So I took the artist out to dinner instead.