Pierre Soulages

A seminal figure in postwar European art, Soulages was celebrated for his distinctive use of black as a primary medium. He was born in the French town of Rodez, and showed an early interest in Romanesque art and prehistoric cave paintings, influences that would later manifest in the monumentality and austerity of his mature work. After moving to Paris in the 1940s, he began to distance himself from the figurative traditions of French painting, aligning instead with abstraction. By the late 1940s, Soulages had already exhibited internationally, gaining attention for his bold compositions using heavy brushstrokes and dark tones, which aligned him loosely with Art Informel, though he always insisted on his independence from any single movement. His first exhibition was at the Salon des Indépendants in 1947, and in 1954 he exhibited at the Venice Biennale and in New York.

Soulages is perhaps most closely associated with his groundbreaking “Outrenoir” (Beyond Black) series, which he began in 1979. In these works, black paint went beyond colour and became a medium for reflecting light. He used knives, brushes and improvised tools to sculpt thick layers of black pigment on large canvases, manipulating surface texture to catch and redirect light in dynamic ways. This radical engagement with black as both material and subject led him to explore the relationship between light, perception, and space. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Soulages remained deeply committed to non-representational painting, and his works often evoke a meditative or spiritual quality. 

Over the course of his career, Soulages was widely celebrated both in France and internationally. In 2019 he became the first living artist to be honored with a solo exhibition at the Louvre, and his works are held by major museums such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Tate Modern in London. In 2014, the Musée Soulages opened in his hometown of Rodez, dedicated entirely to his work. He was a recipient of numerous honours, including the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest civilian distinction. He died in October 2022 at the age of 102.