Cristof Yvoré Biography

Cristof Yvoré starts out from remembered images in which a recognisable commonplace is reduced to its most simple form of expression. A patch of light on the wall of a room, the folds at the bottom of a drawn curtain, a table with a vase on it, empty or filled with flowers of all shapes and colours. These tranquil still-lifes, which Yvoré has been painting consistently for years, and for which he refuses to provide any theoretical background, appear isolated from any form of contemporary influence. The wear and tear these subjects have endured over the centuries gives these images a superficial feel that is precisely Yvoré's starting point for his explorations as a painter. By building up lots of grainy layers and using paint he mixes himself, Yvoré often finds his paintings have the effect of being 'overpainted'. The substance of the paint forms a pastose crust. It is precisely in the working of the material that the boundary between an exaggerated, heavy painting and a stimulating new image is explored.

Cristof Yvoré joined the gallery in 1994.

Text courtesy Zeno X Gallery.