Written by Charlie Egraz
Pierre & Gilles is the pseudonym of the French artist couple formed by photographer Pierre Commoy and painter Gilles Blanchard. Specialising in celebrity and fashion portraits, the couple reinvent traditional imagery by exploiting art history, religious mythology and pop culture to create an iconography all their own.
"Nothing was premeditated and it was a real revelation" - Pierre & Gilles
Pierre Commoy was born in La Roche-Sur-Yon in 1950. He studied photography in Geneva before working in Paris for the magazines Dépêche Mode and Interview Rock & Folk. Gilles Blanchard was born in Le Havre in 1953. He paints and works as a magazine illustrator.
Pierre and Gilles met in 1976 at the opening of a Kenzo boutique. A love story quickly grew between the two artists. They moved in together and continued to work independently in their own categories. Gilles, at the Beaux-Arts, focuses on paintings, collages and illustrations while Pierre does photography. They both have a passion for collecting Photomatons for their saturated, artificial colours. One day, they decided to take classic photographs of their friends modelled on these Photomatons, but the colours were not satisfying for them. Gilles suggested to Pierre that painting directly onto the prints would enhance the colours. "Nothing was premeditated and it was a real revelation". Delighted with the result, the two men decided to work together in the future. At first they signed their full names, but soon became Pierre et Gilles. Their work reflects their view of the times they have lived through, punctuated by discoveries and encounters, but also by drama and storms.
Over the years, their vision has evolved, and their compositions reveal the feelings that have driven them in the face of the many debates that run through society, from questions of sexual identity to social exclusion, from religious tolerance to precariousness, from global warming to war.
Between their joint work and their life as a couple, there is no room for egocentricity. Pierre and Gilles have managed to come to terms with each other and learn to make space for each other to strike a perfect balance. As a result, for almost fifty years they have formed one of the most illustrious couples in contemporary art, made famous by their fantastic marriage of painting and photography.
"To create images that blend reality, everyday life, dreams and fantasy" - Pierre & Gilles
Pierre & Gilles are world-renowned artists who have developed a great body of work that breaks with "good taste" and is strongly influenced by pop art. Often described as kitsch by the press, their works are dreamlike and whimsical, blending art history, religious mythology and popular culture. This highly idiosyncratic iconography is reminiscent of the shimmering colours of Bollywood, and not without reason: "There was the cinema, Bollywood, all those films. And then there was the religious side that we rediscovered in India. We were very surprised to see Saint-Thérèse of Lisieux, very colourful in the middle of a small village square, to see Saint-Sébastiens. It was after this trip that we felt the need to rediscover religion, which we'd put on the back burner for a while".
The duo always follow the same process; Pierre makes preliminary sketches of the idea, then they make up and dress the model, assemble accessories and prepare the set where Pierre takes the photograph. A character, often alone, takes centre stage in a colourful, sophisticated setting. During the session, they leave a great deal to improvisation, guided by the model, their story and their ideas. Once the print has been made on canvas, the photograph is mounted on a stretcher. Gilles meticulously embellishes the work with a brush, embellishing and accentuating the images. Finally, together they design a special frame to seal the final work. The result is a scintillating work of aesthetic perfection.
As well as their famous portraits, they have produced record sleeves for a number of artists, including :
Amanda Lear (Diamonds for Breakfast, 1980),
Etienne Daho (La notte, 1984 et Reserection, 1995),
Indochine (Tes yeux noirs, 1985),
Lio (Les brunes comptent pas pour des prunes, 1986),
Erasure (Wild !, 1989),
Deee-Lite (Good beat, 1991),
Les créatures (Anima Animus, 1999),
Lilly Wood and the Prick (Shadows, 2015).
"When we look at people, we don't pass judgement. We really don't. We can just as easily paint a picture of a nucleus as of a saint, whether it's a big star or an unknown, it's all the same" - Pierre et Gilles
Their paintings mainly feature people close to them, whether anonymous or famous, to go beyond the portrait and tell a story. Each portrait is unique and inspired by the model's personality. "There has to be a trigger, a desire, but above all an inspiration. Sometimes it's terrible because you'd love to photograph certain people, but you just can't find the right idea".
The models they choose are often people they have followed for a long time, and vice versa. They enter the model's world, and let the model enter theirs. The roles assigned to each model are closely linked to what they are capable of embodying. Even if they like to provoke them, the roles are tailor-made and correspond to the people chosen. Discovering the model's character is essential for them in order to give meaning to the image and its story.
The love they share for each other and for human beings are intangible themes in their work. A work that is inseparable from their relationship and their world.