Many years, more sketchbooks. In a new exhibition at BE-Part in Waregem, Belgian artist Arpaïs Du Bois presents an excerpt from this never-ending stream of drawings. We talked colours, shapes and meaning with New Master Carole De Buck. Before we know it, with sketchbooks and a pot of black ink in her pocket, she sets off on a drawing mission herself.
Hi Carole. We’re at the exhibition Dans la chambre à murmures of Arpaïs Du Bois. What do we see?
We see about eighty identical frames in a line across the walls, each containing a page from a sketchbook. The drawings contain textual concepts and abstract, elementary shapes, leaving no white space. Across the space, there are 3D extensions of drawings and sound elements with a whispering voice. Looking at the colours of the exhibitions, I’d say: ‘Autumn's gone pink’.
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Which elements are you drawn to?
It’s mainly the texts that resonate with me. ‘À l’extérieur du vide’, for example, or ‘écraser lentement’, to slowly crush down. It feels like she’s breaking down larger concepts through simple shapes — stripes, circles, blocks, … I’m inclined to read the text first and then try to understand how she uses forms to depict a kind of poetry or reading of the world.
It feels like Arpaïs Du Bois is breaking down larger concepts through simple shapes — stripes, circles, blocks, …
You both use drawing daily to process the world. Her work tends to be abstract, while your drawings are mostly figurative.
In her work, I see the digestion of worldly concepts rather than everyday impressions. While I also place my drawings in a broader social reality, I often start with day-to-day interpersonal aspects, like conversations with friends or strangers. I usually take pictures of spontaneous moments, translating them into drawings before the meaning of the situation fades into my memory. The figures in my drawings often comment directly on the world, while her approach to text seems more abstract.
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Du Bois disciplined herself to create a drawing every day for ten years. Do you set similar rules for yourself?
Drawing happens to me more naturally. My drawing productivity is strongly linked to my mental state. The better I feel, the more I’m engaged in projects and the more I draw. During more difficult periods, I tend to draw less. At some point I started using drawing as a sort of intuitive therapy, giving concrete shapes to cloudy thoughts. But I never force myself to draw, it always comes intuitively.
Your work is quite political. Du Bois also incorporates a political layer, though more subtle.
There’s a political-philosophical layer to her work. Words like ‘inquiétude’, ‘habitude’ and ‘le vide’ point to larger personal or global concerns. She leaves room for interpretation, using playful and multi-interpretable language. I also like to play with language in my work. I like the sentence ‘ne faire que refaire’ here [points at a drawing]. A friend told me this summer: ‘Everything’s already been done, but the world needs to be redone.’
In light of time, everything is always new again
Of course, everything has been done, but that should not stop us from doing things and to keep fighting for a better world. In light of time, everything is always new again. It’s very humble and poetic.
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What materials do you mainly use and do you see similarities with her work?
We both like to use the sketchbook. I always carry sketchbooks with me, ranging from A7 to A4. Arpaïs Du Bois sticks close to the original drawing process, cutting pages directly from her sketchbook. Lately, I’ve been enjoying experimenting with scanning and printing, adding new layers to the original drawings. There's something exciting about what machines give back to you by letting go of some of the control. For a while, I only used blue BIC pens, as I used to stress about colour choices. This eventually led to my first publication, On a scale from one to sunshine, which is a kind of ode to life as well as a critique of society. Little by little, other materials crept in. I’m now exploring Chinese ink, I love it! Instead of markers, I now have a pot of ink in my bag.
There's something exciting about what machines give back to you by letting go of some of the control
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When did drawing become important for you?
Since childhood, but it wasn’t until my exchange year during my studies of Architecture in Paris that, through the eyes of my local friends, I became ‘Carole the drawer’. They were always curious about what story I had invented next to their drawn portraits. Ever since I have carried my sketchbooks with me. But I don't only draw in sketchbooks. All kinds of materials are potential playgrounds: pieces of plastic, backpacks, skin, trousers, tables, as well as bigger elements in the city. I love that my work can serve direct purposes; for work, events, and political actions, ... That’s how I want to continue working, with and for the people, operating within the city context as a socio-political background for my work.
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<div class="editorial-banner"> <div class=“editorial-credits”> @bepart_platform / @buucarole <br/> Dans la chambre à murmures - Arpaïs Du Bois <br/> until 15.12.2024 <br/> Waregem, Be-Part Waregem <br/> The expo is free to visit </div></div>
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