in the 1980s

In the 1980s and early 1990s, at the height of the AIDS crisis, a very dark time for me, I developed compositions with ink on paper and my work was shown in SoHo galleries. This medium enabled me to express myself in the New York environment: At the time I did not feel sufficiently confident to venture into the realm of creative writing in English.

After 1992, all my energy and time were absorbed by my work at the United Nations. Although I continued to create ink on paper compositions, I did it for my own pleasure and my closest friends’. There was no time to maintain contacts with galleries, art critics and collectors.

Pendant les années 80 et au début des années 90, une période sombre où mes amis disparaissaient emportés par le sida, pour pouvoir m’exprimer dans un langage que mes proches à New York puissent comprendre, je me suis tourné vers des compositions encre sur papier. Après 1992, mes énergies se sont recentrées sur mon travail à l’ONU, pour moi un espace tout aussi important et prenant.

Again, since 2015 in France, I have been able to give to this art work the space it offers me to express my thoughts and emotions. My inks on paper were shown in 2015 in Bayonne (French Basque Country). Future shows are planned.

Depuis 2015, en France, j’ai à nouveau développé cette expression importante pour moi. J’ai récemment exposé mes encres sur papier à Bayonne. D’autres expositions sont prévues.

I was most active in New York from 1983 until 1992. My work was shown at:
The Gateway Center, Newark (September 1987),
The 55 Mercer Street Gallery, SoHo (December 1988),
Ariel Gallery, SoHo (January 1988, November 1988, August 1989, January 1990),
Gallery International, 57th Street, New York (December 1989).

I received a number of awards:
Certificate of Excellence, International Art Competition, Art Horizon, New York, 1988,
Certificate of Excellence, International Art Competition, Artitudes, New York, 1989,
Sixth prize, SoHo International Art Competition, New York, 1989.

Ma grande période de créativité à New York couvre les années 1983–1992.
Entre 1987 et 1990, j’ai participé à sept expositions et reçu trois prix internationaux.
(voir ci-dessus l’information détaillée)

Art critics wrote that my “colors flow together into masses of considerable weight and substance without ever losing their graceful movement. Splashes of pale green and lavender break up the predominant blues that sweep through [my] compositions, establishing volume with balance and sensitivity.” (in Manhattan Arts, February 1988) and also that my colored ink drawings “suggest nature in totally abstract terms. One exceptionally beautiful piece, “Wild Fruit,” for example, suggests not the appearance of its subject, but its sensuality and succulence.” (in Artspeak, November 1988)

Des critiques d’art ont dit que mes « plages de couleur évoquent des substances massives sans perdre la grâce d’un mouvement libre ». (voir le texte en anglais ci-dessus)

An art critic who wrote a full profile of myself and my work in the early 90’s noted that my “work is not an intellectual exercise; it is a visceral expression, an effusion of emotion, a release of creative energy controlled by a highly refined chromatic sensibility.” [go to ANNEXES, for his review, “Artists in the 1990’s”]

Un critique d’art parle « d’un travail qui n’est pas un jeu intellectuel : c’est l’expression d’émotions viscérales » (voir la citation en anglais ci-dessus, et l’article complet en annexe : Artists in the 1990’s).

The United Nations staff newsletter (Secretariat News) told how I balanced my office work and my art work, and the meaning I gave to it: “To ease tension and balance his affairs, Clapisson leaves the UN every evening to enter a dream world of his own.” Of course our newsletter as well as art critics did not speak of the raw anguish that took hold of me at a time when most of my friends died, one after another, falling under AIDS, and I thought I would go down as well. My inks on paper were about what was left of the joy and energy of life. [go to ANNEXES, for this article: Secretariat News, May 1990]

Le bulletin mensuel des employés de l’ONU disait qu’après une dure journée au bureau, mes créations encre sur papier m’ouvraient le monde de l’imaginaire. Ni ce bulletin, ni les critiques d’art qui parlaient de ces créations, personne ne parlait de l’angoisse mortelle qui m’avait saisi à cette époque : mes amis mouraient du sida, et je pensais que mon tour allait arriver. Mes encres sur papier étaient une protestation : la vie est plus forte tant qu’elle est. (voir en annexe cet article : Secretariat News, May 1990)