We often tend to, a bit too easily, reduce Soulages' work to his canvases that he himself calls outrenoir. Huge flats of black paint reflecting light to bring out color. However, not only did he develop this technique only in the 70s, after already having a career spanning over 20 years, but this technique is also much more diverse and rich than that. Indeed, while the painter left behind more than 1700 paintings on canvas, he also offered us several hundred paintings on paper (over 800, to give you an idea), all equally stunning. And it is these later works that the Musée du Luxembourg will showcase starting this fall.
Shadow and Light
Soulages asserted throughout his life: there is no hierarchy among the different techniques.
g> that he was able to use throughout his career. Even more, while he is now very well-known for his canvases, he created his very first works on paper as early as 1946. At that time, the painter used walnut ink, a mixture normally dedicated to wood dyeing, to sketch his first lines. Very quickly, by playing with color and paper, he discovered a magical universe, made up of transparencies and opacities.Voir cette publication sur Instagram
A revolutionary technique for its time, allowing him to quickly stand out from his contemporaries and establish himself among the greats of abstract art. While he later evolves, experimenting with gouache, ink, and even charcoal, he never parts ways with his love for paper, which he continues to explore until the early 2000s, nor with that poetic quality of forms so characteristic of his work. This results in works with subtle hues that play with reflections and textures.
Black, it's black
For the first time, these paper works of rare intensity are honored in a Parisian museum, excluding the canvases, sketches, and other ceramics the artist has worked on. The institution, located just a couple of steps ... the first Parisian workshop of Soulages (in the Montparnasse area), has chosen a simple, chronological scenography to showcase these unique creations. On the white walls, paper covered with black shapes stands here and there like musical notes on a sheet.
Pierre Soulages, Walnut ink on paper, 1947 - Domnick Collection, Nürtingen with State Palaces and Gardens of Baden-Württemberg © Adagp, Paris, 2025
In total, there are 130 works waiting for you here, including nearly thirty that are completely new, showcasing the entire life of this extraordinary artist, who left us in 2024 at the very respectable age of 102. Filled with portraits and interviews, the exhibition reveals another aspect of Soulages, just as important and whole. As you wander through the rooms, you’ll experience the graphic power of the master of outrenoir, celebrating the artistry of someone who dedicated his life to using the...darkness to enhance the light.
Soulages, another light
Musée du Luxembourg
19, rue de Vaugirard – 6th
From September 17, 2025, to January 11, 2026
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