Andre Marfaing prints, Andre Marfaing, Andre Marfaing works of art

JACQUES ROGER

Jacques Roger (Neuilly, November 8, 1931 - Paris, February 2, 1986) Jacques Roger devoted his artistic career to exploring shades of white and black. His etchings, with their creamy texture, captivate the eye and inspire reflection. Initially a cartographer at IGN, he leads a family life with his wife Renée and their two children, Alain and Philippe. Passionate about photography, he traveled around Paris with his camera, in search of images, particularly appreciating portraits and still lifes. He learned, trained, and experimented with various mediums, ranging from the creation of copper jewelry to designs on scarves. In 1956, he was called to serve in the Algerian War, where he practiced aerial photography. On his return, he resumed his work as a cartographer, but it was only for a time. He then left Paris to join the artistic excitement of Nice; his wife and children did not follow him. It's the beginning of a breakup. A period of great sadness, which lasted three years, and which ended with a return to Paris in 1970. Little by little, the situation improved. He acquired an apartment at 152, boulevard Montparnasse, a place conducive to creation.

He enrolled in evening classes at the Ateliers de la ville de Paris, at 80, boulevard du Montparnasse, where his master Jean Delpech taught him drawing and engraving. There he met artists such as Philippe Molhitz, François Houtin, Yo Ichikawa, Claude Schulsinger, Jacques Rouxel, and became friends with Bertrand Séguy. These encounters nourish his curiosity and his desire to create. Jacques Roger spent many summers in Eygalières, in Provence, with his friend Aimé Maeght, gallery owner and art patron. There, he frequented a large community of major artists of the 20th century. His works were regularly exhibited between 1970 and 1986, notably at Georges, at “Pointes et Burin”, at the “Cultural Center of Egypt”, at “La Hune”, at the “Consulat de France” in Hamburg, and at the “Maeght” gallery. Fourteen of his engravings are also preserved in the collections of the National Library of France.

In 1972, his first works were still figurative, like Bilboquet and Rêve, but abstract art ended up dominating his work. The artist is particularly sensitive to the balance of forces: his engravings are born from a harmonious stacking between black and white, emptiness and fullness. Jacques Roger's attraction to black manifests itself in all its richness: deep or diluted black, he explores this color and contrasts it with the whiteness of the paper, which radiates and testifies to his quest for light in Alla and Triangle noir. In 1973, noticing that his eyesight was diminishing, he energetically launched into etching. Black on white paper, his works, like musical variations, are striking with their rhythm and expressive force.

From 1975, colors were gradually integrated into his engravings: green, blue, purple, shades previously absent from his work, could symbolize a renewal, a reconciliation with his children, whom he had not seen for a long time. His love life, marked by trials, is expressed in works such as The Rose, Imbued with Hope, or Without Importance and Why That, which bear witness to the suffering linked to the loss of his sight, his working tool. In 1980, his health deteriorated seriously. The blacks in his works become deeper, and the bright reds appear. The fence that was often part of his compositions gives way to ropes and knots, undoubtedly symbolizing the tension of his physical condition. However, in this concert of lines and shapes, the chiaroscuro continues to guide our gaze towards the light. Jacques Roger's life is that of a resilient artist, always in search of meaning and expression despite personal trials and material constraints. His work, captivating and poignant, bears witness to a rich artistic and emotional journey, where pain and hope mingle.

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JACQUES ROGER