ABOUT
ALAIN BERTRAND: BIOGRAPHY
• 1946: Birth of Alain Bertrand near Paris. He was sent to boarding school near Evreux very early on. This isolation and the proximity of the American base were decisive in the formation of his tastes. He discovered rock’n roll, Elvis Presley, cigarettes and… American cars. After the army, he ended up at Renault. He will remain there 11 years to control the R5 and R12. At the same time, he painted, mainly cars and began to place his drawings in comic books (Tintin, Pilote …).
• 1976: Revelation during a first trip to the USA. From now on, most of his production will be devoted to the USA … Other trips will follow to his two favorite regions: Arizona and New Mexico.
• 1979: Collaboration with Alain Marouani on “Barclay records” for the creation of numerous album covers including a box set of 11 Eddy Mitchell albums.
Collaboration with Francis Coppola on the creation of the “coup de cœur” poster. Creation of the movie poster “Is there a French in the theater?” “. Poster of the film “Many dearest” with Faye Dunaway… Works in the United States for the realization of advertising campaigns (New York Telephon, Atari, Jeep Cherokee, etc.).
• From 1982 to 1990: Created with Patrice and Christian Larue: BAHAMAS, a group of illustrators who signs many national advertising campaigns – Darty, Roussel, Renault, Peugeot, Mars (Twix) Etc.
This group of illustrators presented individual works, notably at the illustrators’ fairs at the Austerlitz space in Paris in 1984 and 1985. “Silver Market” prize awarded by Mécanorma.
• From 1988 to 1996: Numerous exhibitions: Nice Acropolis, Cogolin castle, Cagnes sur mer Hippodrome, Art expo in Bordeaux, Retromobile show, Expo at the Monaco Grand Prix.
• 1996: Collaborates with Steven Spielberg on Jurassic Park II (The Lost World).
• 1997: Illustrations of the texts by Christine Bravo for a collection “The animals that fear” published by Michel Lafon.
• From 2000 to 2009: he exhibits at the Ariel Sibony gallery in Paris, Catto Gellery in London, Gallery Luc Pieters in Belgium and the Galerie des remparts in Bordeaux and Opera Gallery in Miami, New York and Singapore.
• 2009: he exhibits in the Bartoux and Catto Gallery galleries as well as in the Hoche gallery in Versailles.
• 2010 /2020: Various exhibitions, Catto Gallery Hampstead London, Ministry of Finance at Bercy Salle Bérégovoy, Aéro-club de France Paris, Galerie Vivienne Paris, Galerie Neel in Cannes, at the Carlton during the Cannes Film Festival 2014, Gallery Art Catto Loulé in Portugal, Galerie Hoche in Versailles, Galerie Next Toulouse, Galerie Michel Miltgen in Luxembourg, Galerie du vieux Honfleur.
HIS INFLUENCES
• 70’s: A first trip to the USA which will definitely mark his painting. At the same time, he began a career as an illustrator working for advertising, publishing and the press. He leaves regularly in Arizona and New Mexico in search of the vestiges of the American dream and rolling or rusty American tin …
• 80’s: His second aesthetic shock when he discovered Cuba. With daily life in Havana, a new thematic component develops in his painting. The warmth of the surrounding colors and the feeling that time has stood still there are, for him, a strong source of inspiration.
HIS STYLE HIS TECHNIQUE
He prefers to paint motorized subjects in an assertive hyperrealistic style. He works just as well by inspiration as he does to order. He paints in oils and with a brush, on large format canvas supports, with perfect rendering of light and shadow. His paintings speak instantly: alive, dynamic, he takes us back decades and leaves us forever nostalgic and orphaned by the American dream.