Expo in Toulouse: Adrien Dax, an “artist” from Toulouse
In Toulouse, as part of the Printemps de Septembre, the Ombres Blanches bookstore is hosting an exhibition by Toulousain Adrien Dax, post-war libertarian and surrealist painter until October 17.
“Secret and solitary painter in the city of Toulouse where he lived, Adrien Dax (1913-1979) is a prominent figure of post-war surrealism. Perhaps he too is a bit of an “anartist”, to borrow the phrase from Marcel Duchamp, ”writes Raphaël Neuville, professor of contemporary art, who signs the portrait of the painter in the booklet of the exhibition at Ombres White. In the 1930s, this son of a railway worker joined the communist youth in the fight against fascism. He frequents the café Tortoni on Place du Capitole (now Macdo) where young Marxists meet, and the bookstore of the former Italian anti-fascist deputy Silvio Trentin, rue du Languedoc. Adrien Dax takes evening classes at the Beaux-Arts while working for a printer. After these militant years, at the age of 35, he made contact with the group of Parisian surrealists led by André Breton, with whom he became friends.
Known for having developed an automatic painting technique, inspired by decals and scraping, Adrien Dax has exhibited in Paris and abroad, but never apparently in Toulouse. The Ombres Blanches bookstore and Printemps de Septembre have brought together a collection of black and white canvases and drawings on loan from the artist’s family. Interior landscapes, enigmatic works, which leave room for everyone’s imagination.