{"id":1038,"date":"2019-01-17T21:09:15","date_gmt":"2019-01-17T20:09:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/?page_id=1038"},"modified":"2020-02-13T12:54:04","modified_gmt":"2020-02-13T11:54:04","slug":"the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/","title":{"rendered":"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu<\/h1>\n<p>An iconic figure in French abstract art beginning in the 1950s, Georges Mathieu (1921-2012) encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with calligraphy and the Japanese tradition. However, Andr\u00e9 Malraux (1901-1976) had already referred to him as a &#8220;<em>western calligrapher<\/em>&#8221; at the exhibition held at the Ren\u00e9 Drouin Gallery in 1950<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_1');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_1');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_1\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">1<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_1\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">first solo exhibition by Mathieu in Paris&nbsp;; &#8220;<em>Hiroshima on the Place Vend\u00f4me&nbsp;!<\/em>&#8221; was the headline by critic Jean Caillens<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>, implicitly connecting him to the calligraphy of the Far East.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In the Far East, traditional calligraphy was initially developed by Buddhist monks. They make spiritual use of the art form, often alongside ink painting (<em>shu\u01d0 m\u00f2 hu\u00e0<\/em> \u6c34\u58a8\u756b in Chinese, <em>sumi-e<\/em> \u58a8\u7d75 or <em>suibokuga<\/em> \u6c34\u58a8\u753b in Japanese). Calligraphy is known according to terms like &#8220;laws of writing&#8221; in Chinese (<em>sh\u016bf\u0103<\/em>, \u66f8\u6cd5) and &#8220;path of writing&#8221; in Japanese (<em>shod\u014d<\/em>, \u66f8\u9053). Born in China, this discipline begins to distinguish itself from ordinary writing during the Han dynasty (from 206 BC to 220 AD). It reaches Japan at the end of the Nara period (710-794).<\/p>\n<p>While calligraphy in the Far East is imbued with a philosophical quality, western calligraphy never became a spiritual discipline, despite its development within religious institutions. Thus it remains close to the etymology of the word, which in France and most western countries, originates with the Greek <em>kalligraphia,<\/em> meaning beautiful writing.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;<em>Finally, a western calligrapher!<\/em>&#8221; \u2014 Andr\u00e9 Malraux, regarding Georges Mathieu<\/p>\n<p>So often remembered, should this remark be understood as drawing a simple parallel between modern abstract painting and far eastern calligraphy?<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, art historian Sir Herbert Read wrote in 1954 that Mathieu was &#8220;<em>certainly well aware of the principles of Chinese calligraphy<\/em>&#8221; and that he deployed &#8220;<em>two essential aspects of good calligraphy<\/em>&#8221; and these are &#8220;<em>a simulation of life in the strokes and a dynamic equilibrium in the design of the piece<\/em>&#8220;<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_2');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_2');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_2\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">2<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_2\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">preface by Sir Herbert Read <em>in<\/em> Chiang Yee, <em>Chinese Calligraphy: An Introduction to its Aesthetic and Technique<\/em>, Ed. Methuen, London, 1954<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>.<\/p>\n<p>To better understand this association of calligraphy with the work of Mathieu, one must look into research on abstract painting undertaken by the artist from the end of the 1940s.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Speed and sign<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In 1963, in&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism), <\/em>Mathieu describes his pictorial research related to the sign. There, he explains that from 1949 onward the background of his canvasses took on more uniform tones, and as a consequence, the signs inscribed on them became more and more independent<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_3');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_3');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_3\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">3<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_3\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.65 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>. At the same time, curved and twisted forms became increasingly sharper and more precise, as the gesture accelerated.<\/p>\n<p>The painter bases his research on the abstraction of his signs. As the sign itself is a tool of abstraction, it is not its form but its meaning that Mathieu renders abstract. Thus, he explains that the abstract sign refutes any meaning prior to its creation. It is no longer the result of an idea. This contrasts with the traditional calligraphy of the Far East, in which all of the traced signs have a meaning, as it is so intimately tied to reading.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In this way, the painting of Georges Mathieu is built from abstract signs which he traces in a single gesture, giving the painter tremendous speed when he creates his canvasses. This speed, which translates an emotion in contrast with a pre-defined gesture, certainly led Malraux to establish a link between the abstract sign of Mathieu and the calligraphy of the Far East whose speed of execution is greater than western calligraphy. Moreover, calligraphy in the Far East can also escape the rigor that the practice requires and distort itself to convey the emotion of the calligrapher, making it practically illegible. Undoubtedly, this aspect of calligraphy that highlights the value of the gesture and the speed in order to translate an emotion enabled Malraux to refer to Mathieu as a &#8220;<em>western calligrapher<\/em>&#8220;. &nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In 1959, shortly after his stay in Japan, Georges Mathieu wrote about the speed and personal inspiration of far eastern calligraphers:&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Far eastern calligraphy improvises on given characters, \u2014 it is true \u2014 but in total liberty according to one&#8217;s personal inspiration, and speed steps in just as does a certain state of &#8220;ecstasy&#8221;. As I was in Japan last year, I could see master calligraphers making gigantic signs in just a few seconds. Nobody would think to refute any artistic quality to their work under the pretext that it is done in just a few seconds. I will add to these conditions of speed and improvisation that of needing to be in a trance-like zone: it is both a concentration of psychic energies as well as the most total state of vacuousness possible.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_4');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_4');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_4\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">4<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_4\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.39 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu, <em>From the abstract to the possible \u2014 Foundations for an exegesis of western art<\/em>, Ed. of the Circle of Contemporary Art in Zurich, 1959<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_4').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_4', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Mathieu also explains that calligraphers paint forms based on references from which they do not stray, but from which they free themselves through speed and improvisation. Thus, he maintains that it is about creating and not copying.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_5');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_5');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_5\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">5<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_5\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.38 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>De l\u2019abstrait au possible \u2014 Jalons pour une ex\u00e9g\u00e8se de l\u2019art occidental (<\/em><em>From the abstract to the possible \u2014 Foundations for an exegesis of western art)<\/em>, Ed. of the Circle of Contemporary Art in Zurich, 1959<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_5').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_5', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n<p><strong>Parallel development of abstract calligraphy<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This notion of liberating the sign through the speed of the gesture most likely captivated Mathieu, since he establishes a parallel between it and lyrical abstraction the same year in&nbsp;<em>De l\u2019abstrait au possible (<\/em><em>From the abstract to the possible)<\/em>. Lyrical abstraction is the artistic movement led by Georges Mathieu and defined by a direct expression of the emotion of the painter, often through the gesture itself, as opposed to geometric abstraction in which line and color combine to provide a structure to the composition.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Speed and improvisation are what enables one to associate this painting&#8217;s creative forms [l&#8217;abstraction lyrique] with those of liberated, direct musical styles like jazz or with eastern calligraphies.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_6');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_6');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_6\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">6<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_6\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.38 <em>in <\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>De l\u2019abstrait au possible \u2014 Jalons pour une ex\u00e9g\u00e8se de l\u2019art occidental (<\/em><em>From the abstract to the possible \u2014 Foundations for an exegesis of western art)<\/em>, Ed. of the Circle of Contemporary Art in Zurich, 1959<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_6').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_6', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This explanation aligns with his early 1950s research on the abstract sign. As he explains in&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>&nbsp;in this period, he puts forward the following idea:&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Therefore, I note that \u201ccalligraphy\u201d, the art of the sign par excellence, has managed to liberate itself from the literal content signifier of writing, and it is henceforth only the direct power of meaning, with writing itself outstripping its own fundamental value.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_7');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_7');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_7\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">7<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_7\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.65 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu, <em>Beyond Tachisme<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_7').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_7', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Mathieu is referring to the evolution, parallel to his research, of calligraphy as a fully artistic discipline. Between the end of the 1940s and the beginning of the 1950s, an avant-garde of Japanese calligraphy was created under the designation <em>zen-ei sho<\/em> (\u524d\u885b\u66f8). The use of traditional materials, such as brush and paper, subsists in the practice of calligraphy performed by the artists who make up this avant-garde. The artists who joined this avant-garde were searching for a total freedom of gesture. These artists came together in a group known by the name <em>Bokujinkai<\/em> (\u58a8\u4eba\u4f1a, &#8220;association of the men of ink&#8221;) and whose structure revolves around the figure of Shiry\u016b Morita. The latter founded the review entitled <em>Bokubi<\/em> (\u58a8\u7f8e, &#8220;beauty of the ink&#8221;), published between 1951 and 1981, which was considered to be the standard of the avant-garde movement in calligraphy, enabling the artists of <em>Bokujinkai<\/em> to establish contact with western artists.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_8');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_8');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_8\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">8<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_8\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><em>in<\/em> Aitana Merino Estebaranz,&nbsp;<em>\u00bfCaligraf\u00eda o abstracci\u00f3n? <\/em><em>El papel internacional del Sho en las exposiciones de posguerra (Calligraphy or abstraction? The international role of Sho in post-war exhibitions)<\/em>, <em>Anales de Historia del Arte (<\/em><em>Annals of the History of Art)<\/em>, vol. 23, 2013, pp.193-207<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_8').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_8', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Next, Mathieu&#8217;s theory was confirmed by an article on Kline and Tal-Coat by Sabur\u014d Hasegawa, published in this review in November, 1951<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_9');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_9');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_9\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">9<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_9\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><em>in<\/em> Sabur\u014d (Sabro) Hasegawa, <em>The Beauty of Black and White, Bokubi, <\/em>1951<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_9').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_9', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>. In the article, he explains the link between <em>kyo-so,<\/em><span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_10');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_10');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_10\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">10<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_10\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">a word in Japanese that evokes speed as well as madness or inebriation<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_10').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_10', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>(\u72c2\u8349), a style of cursive calligraphy (<em>s\u014dshotai<\/em> \u8349\u66f8\u4f53 in Japanese, <em>tsao shu<\/em> \u8349\u66f8 in Chinese) that is freer and more informal&nbsp;and the painting of Pollock. Such an approach shows the willingness to associate this calligraphy with abstract western painting.<\/p>\n<p>Mathieu shared the idea of a new abstract calligraphy without reference to writing, and as a result different from that of <em>Bokujinkai<\/em>, with Jir\u014d Yoshihara, founder of <em>Gutai.<\/em><span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_11');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_11');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_11\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">11<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_11\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">see Rena Kano, under the direction of Didier Schulmann,&nbsp;<em>Georges Mathieu, voyage et peintures au Japon, ao\u00fbt, septembre 1957 (<\/em><em>Georges Mathieu, Travel and Paintings in Japan, August, September, 1957)<\/em>, \u00c9cole du Louvre, Paris, 2009, p.13<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_11').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_11', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script> Even though he himself distinguishes calligraphy from modern abstract painting, in a certain way, Mathieu is a&nbsp;precursor of this far eastern calligraphy that is totally abstract and without points of reference, which will only be materialized and developed through <em>bokush\u014d bijutsu <\/em>(\u58a8\u66f8\u7f8e\u8853, &#8220;the abstract art of ink&#8221;, first designation of <em>zen-ei sho<\/em> <span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_12');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_12');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_12\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">12<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_12\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><em>in<\/em> Christine Flint Sato, <em>The Rise of Avant-garde Calligraphy in Japan<\/em>, in the exhibition catalogue <em>Spring Lines: Contemporary Calligraphy from East and West<\/em>, Ditchling Museum, Brighton, April-June, 2001<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_12').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_12', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>) over the course of the 1950s.<\/p>\n<p>While in Japan in 1957, Mathieu met up with art critic Michel Tapi\u00e9 in Nishinomiya (located between Osaka and Kobe) to visit the <em>Kaisei-ji<\/em> (Buddhist temple of the <em>Rinzai&nbsp;<\/em>sect) along with members of&nbsp;<em>Gutai<\/em>. Thus, he had the chance to admire a &#8220;<em>frenetic calligraphy<\/em>&#8221; painted by the Zen Buddhist monk Nakahara Nantenb\u014d (1839-1925) on a <em>fusuma<\/em> (sliding paper door) in one of the temple rooms. It features a giant, eight meter, calligraphy made with a very large brush, which Mathieu considered to be &#8220;<em>something rather informal<\/em>&#8220;<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_13');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_13');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_13\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">13<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_13\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><em>in<\/em> <em>Informal,<\/em> <em>honmono nisemono<\/em> (\u672c\u7269\u507d\u7269, the true and the false), <em>Geijutsu Shincho, <\/em>Tokyo, 1st November, 1957, pp.89-102&nbsp;; see Rena Kano, under the direction of Didier Schulmann,&nbsp;<em>Georges Mathieu, voyage et peintures au Japon, ao\u00fbt, septembre 1957 (<\/em><em>Georges Mathieu, Travel and Paintings in Japan, August, September, 1957)<\/em>, \u00c9cole du Louvre, Paris, 2009, p.14<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_13').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_13', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>, thereby employing the term used by Tapi\u00e9 at the beginning of the 1950s to describe the &#8220;<em>anti-geometric, anti-naturalist, and non-figurative<\/em>&#8221; avant-garde which is built around lyrical abstraction, itself identified at the end of the 1940s.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Confirmation of the parallel<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Georges Mathieu establishes a connection between calligraphy and modern abstract painting rather than considering a preeminence of one over another, as he explained in 1956 in&nbsp;<em>Rapports de certains aspects de la peinture non-figurative lyrique et de la calligraphie chinoise<\/em>&nbsp;(<em>Connections between certain aspects of lyrical, non-figurative painting and Chinese calligraphy)<\/em><span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_14');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_14');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_14\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">14<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_14\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">reproduced <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu, <em>Beyond Tachisme<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_14').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_14', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>, following a dialogue with Dr. Chou Ling, permanent delegate of China to UNESCO, and with master calligrapher Zhang Daqian <span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_15');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_15');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_15\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">15<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_15\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">sometimes written as Chang Ta-Ch&#8217;ien or Chang Dai-Chien<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_15').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_15', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>, organized by the International Center for Aesthetic Studies, June 11, 1956.<\/p>\n<p>He did not consider the mere outward appearance of a work to be sufficient to link it to the Far East. In 1963, he wrote that &#8220;<em>use of non-figurative signs is not enough to turn \u201cwriting\u201d into&nbsp;calligraphy in an oriental sense<\/em>&#8220;<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_16');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_16');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_16\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">16<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_16\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.104 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du Tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_16').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_16', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script>. On the other hand, he establishes this link through a &#8220;<em>primacy of the speed of execution<\/em>&#8220;, the absence of any &#8220;<em>preexistence of form<\/em>&#8220;, the absence of any &#8220;<em>premeditation of the gesture<\/em>&#8221; and an &#8220;<em>ecstatic state<\/em>&#8220;.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_17');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_17');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_17\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">17<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_17\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><em>in <\/em>Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Rapports de certains aspects de la peinture non-figurative lyrique et de la calligraphie chinoise (<\/em><em>Relations between certain aspects of non-figurative lyrical painting and Chinese calligraphy)<\/em>, 1956, reproduced p.186 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du Tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_17').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_17', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Without truly granting eastern calligraphy any kind of lineage with respect to his own work, he notes the &#8220;<em>coincidence<\/em>&#8221; between the <em>kyo-so<\/em> style and his own technique.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_18');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_18');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_18\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">18<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_18\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.104 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du Tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_18').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_18', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script> While they may not be oriental, the signs created by Mathieu can also not be qualified as western according to the criteria of speed, which he does not find in any of his contemporaries:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Signs of Masson, those of Tobey before 1957, those of Hartung are artisanal signs. They are elaborated slowly, redone ten times over (Hartung), composed, lifted up, grasped, contoured (Masson, Tobey) : they are western.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_19');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_1038_1('footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_19');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_19\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">19<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_19\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">p.104 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du Tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_19').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1038_1_19', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'center right', relative: true, offset: [0, 0], });<\/script><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>All of these elements confirm the parallel liberation of the sign, then the freeing of its abstraction, between the work of Mathieu and far eastern calligraphy over the course of the 1950s. Once the principle of abstraction is laid out, as a result, Georges Mathieu&#8217;s writing will never stop evolving over the course of his various periods of creation.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 \u00c9douard Lombard, director of the Georges Mathieu Committee<\/p>\n<p>Thanks to Celia Diaz Gonzalez, Kazuto Morita (Tamenaga Gallery), Tamio Ikeda (Tanakaya Gallery)<\/p>\n<p>Photo:&nbsp;<em>Le passe\u0301 compose\u0301 incertain (<\/em><em>The uncertain compound past)<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"speaker-mute footnotes_reference_container\"> <div class=\"footnote_container_prepare\"><p><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_label pointer\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_1038_1();\">R\u00e9f\u00e9rences<\/span><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button\" style=\"display: none;\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_1038_1();\">[<a id=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_1038_1\">+<\/a>]<\/span><\/p><\/div> <div id=\"footnote_references_container_1038_1\" style=\"\"><table class=\"footnotes_table footnote-reference-container\"><caption class=\"accessibility\">R\u00e9f\u00e9rences<\/caption> <tbody> \r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_1');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_1\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>1<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">first solo exhibition by Mathieu in Paris&nbsp;; &#8220;<em>Hiroshima on the Place Vend\u00f4me&nbsp;!<\/em>&#8221; was the headline by critic Jean Caillens<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_2');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_2\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>2<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">preface by Sir Herbert Read <em>in<\/em> Chiang Yee, <em>Chinese Calligraphy: An Introduction to its Aesthetic and Technique<\/em>, Ed. Methuen, London, 1954<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_3');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_3\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>3<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">p.65 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_4');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_4\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>4<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">p.39 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu, <em>From the abstract to the possible \u2014 Foundations for an exegesis of western art<\/em>, Ed. of the Circle of Contemporary Art in Zurich, 1959<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_5');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_5\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>5<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">p.38 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>De l\u2019abstrait au possible \u2014 Jalons pour une ex\u00e9g\u00e8se de l\u2019art occidental (<\/em><em>From the abstract to the possible \u2014 Foundations for an exegesis of western art)<\/em>, Ed. of the Circle of Contemporary Art in Zurich, 1959<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_6');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_6\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>6<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">p.38 <em>in <\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>De l\u2019abstrait au possible \u2014 Jalons pour une ex\u00e9g\u00e8se de l\u2019art occidental (<\/em><em>From the abstract to the possible \u2014 Foundations for an exegesis of western art)<\/em>, Ed. of the Circle of Contemporary Art in Zurich, 1959<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_7');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_7\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>7<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">p.65 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu, <em>Beyond Tachisme<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_8');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_8\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>8<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><em>in<\/em> Aitana Merino Estebaranz,&nbsp;<em>\u00bfCaligraf\u00eda o abstracci\u00f3n? <\/em><em>El papel internacional del Sho en las exposiciones de posguerra (Calligraphy or abstraction? The international role of Sho in post-war exhibitions)<\/em>, <em>Anales de Historia del Arte (<\/em><em>Annals of the History of Art)<\/em>, vol. 23, 2013, pp.193-207<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_9');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_9\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>9<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><em>in<\/em> Sabur\u014d (Sabro) Hasegawa, <em>The Beauty of Black and White, Bokubi, <\/em>1951<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_10');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_10\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>10<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">a word in Japanese that evokes speed as well as madness or inebriation<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_11');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_11\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>11<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">see Rena Kano, under the direction of Didier Schulmann,&nbsp;<em>Georges Mathieu, voyage et peintures au Japon, ao\u00fbt, septembre 1957 (<\/em><em>Georges Mathieu, Travel and Paintings in Japan, August, September, 1957)<\/em>, \u00c9cole du Louvre, Paris, 2009, p.13<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_12');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_12\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>12<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><em>in<\/em> Christine Flint Sato, <em>The Rise of Avant-garde Calligraphy in Japan<\/em>, in the exhibition catalogue <em>Spring Lines: Contemporary Calligraphy from East and West<\/em>, Ditchling Museum, Brighton, April-June, 2001<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_13');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_13\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>13<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><em>in<\/em> <em>Informal,<\/em> <em>honmono nisemono<\/em> (\u672c\u7269\u507d\u7269, the true and the false), <em>Geijutsu Shincho, <\/em>Tokyo, 1st November, 1957, pp.89-102&nbsp;; see Rena Kano, under the direction of Didier Schulmann,&nbsp;<em>Georges Mathieu, voyage et peintures au Japon, ao\u00fbt, septembre 1957 (<\/em><em>Georges Mathieu, Travel and Paintings in Japan, August, September, 1957)<\/em>, \u00c9cole du Louvre, Paris, 2009, p.14<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_14');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_14\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>14<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">reproduced <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu, <em>Beyond Tachisme<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_15');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_15\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>15<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">sometimes written as Chang Ta-Ch&#8217;ien or Chang Dai-Chien<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi\" ><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_16\" class=\"footnote_backlink\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_16');\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>16,<\/a> <a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_18\" class=\"footnote_backlink\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_18');\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>18,<\/a> <a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_19\" class=\"footnote_backlink\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_19');\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>19<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">p.104 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du Tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_1038_1_17');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_1038_1_17\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>17<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><em>in <\/em>Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Rapports de certains aspects de la peinture non-figurative lyrique et de la calligraphie chinoise (<\/em><em>Relations between certain aspects of non-figurative lyrical painting and Chinese calligraphy)<\/em>, 1956, reproduced p.186 <em>in<\/em> Georges Mathieu,&nbsp;<em>Au-del\u00e0 du Tachisme (<\/em><em>Beyond Tachism)<\/em>, Ed. Julliard, 1963<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n <\/tbody> <\/table> <\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> function footnote_expand_reference_container_1038_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_1038_1').show(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_1038_1').text('\u2212'); } function footnote_collapse_reference_container_1038_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_1038_1').hide(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_1038_1').text('+'); } function footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_1038_1() { if (jQuery('#footnote_references_container_1038_1').is(':hidden')) { footnote_expand_reference_container_1038_1(); } else { footnote_collapse_reference_container_1038_1(); } } function footnote_moveToReference_1038_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_1038_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } } function footnote_moveToAnchor_1038_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_1038_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } }<\/script>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu An iconic figure in French abstract art beginning in the 1950s, Georges Mathieu (1921-2012) encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with calligraphy and the Japanese tradition. However, Andr\u00e9 Malraux (1901-1976) had already referred to him as a [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1039,"parent":810,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1038","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu &#8212; Georges Mathieu<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Georges Mathieu encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with Japanese calligraphy.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu &#8212; Georges Mathieu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Georges Mathieu encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with Japanese calligraphy.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Georges Mathieu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/georges.mathieu.officiel\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-02-13T11:54:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1293\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"994\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"11 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/\",\"name\":\"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu &#8212; Georges Mathieu\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/02\\\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-01-17T20:09:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-02-13T11:54:04+00:00\",\"description\":\"Georges Mathieu encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with Japanese calligraphy.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/02\\\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/02\\\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg\",\"width\":1293,\"height\":994},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Accueil\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Publications\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/publications\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"Georges Mathieu\",\"description\":\"The official website\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/georges-mathieu.fr\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu &#8212; Georges Mathieu","description":"Georges Mathieu encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with Japanese calligraphy.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu &#8212; Georges Mathieu","og_description":"Georges Mathieu encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with Japanese calligraphy.","og_url":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/","og_site_name":"Georges Mathieu","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/georges.mathieu.officiel","article_modified_time":"2020-02-13T11:54:04+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1293,"height":994,"url":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"11 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/","url":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/","name":"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu &#8212; Georges Mathieu","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg","datePublished":"2019-01-17T20:09:15+00:00","dateModified":"2020-02-13T11:54:04+00:00","description":"Georges Mathieu encountered the Far East when he went to Japan in 1957 and came into contact with Japanese calligraphy.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Le-passe\u0301-compose\u0301-incertain.jpg","width":1293,"height":994},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/the-calligraphic-nature-of-the-work-of-georges-mathieu\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Accueil","item":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Publications","item":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/publications\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"The calligraphic nature of the work of Georges Mathieu"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/","name":"Georges Mathieu","description":"The official website","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1038","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1038"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1038\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/810"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1039"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/georges-mathieu.fr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1038"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}