MARIO SEPULCRE

8 Gustave-Mario Sepulcre Gustave-Mario Sepulcre Oran (Algeria), 1957 W ith his artistic career oriented around a re-adaptation of the painter’s trade in the style of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, the artist Mario Sepulce has been working on the enigma of still lifes since 1980. An prize-winning artist that has been recognised by prestigious European art institutions, Sepul- cre makes us of scenery that, oddly enough, seems to emulate the depiction of a tragic comedy, and he incorporated everyday items into it. The artist’s brushstrokes invite us to scrutinise the work closely, where the dark vacuum becomes a scene partner within a carefully-drawn story, thus bringing us closer to the discovery of a mirror of our own human destinies: with all their gran- diose and hopeful perspectives and their carnal and psychological limits. Here, still lifes are not thought of as an attractive composition to merely decorative ends, but rather as an enigmatic space, a detached interrogation on existence…a dramaturgy. Numerous Westen art history references, as well as hugely varied techniques, large formats and the concept of series all participate in a new adaptation of the work, which lets the artist move from emotion to idea so as to move towards what is truly essential. With a solid background and years behind him dedicated to wall art, Sepulcre’s work overflows off the canvas, displaying elements more common to still lifes, albeit in such rare dimensions, where nothing is left to luck bar the viewer’s own interpretation.