The painter Jean-Luc Beaufils by Jean-Paul Sourillan

Jean-Luc Beaufils, the last representative of French Modern Art, was born on 18 February 1953. Son of the architect Jean Charles Louis Beaufils, he became familiar with drawing and painting at an early age...

From the age of 4, he already showed a predisposition for construction and colour. "I had countless boxes of pencils, I needed to draw. It was a kind of refuge. As a teenager I was probably a bit of a dreamer. So I kept myself busy by drawing. Then it very quickly became a need," explains the man who would become one of the greatest French colourists. "You have an idea of what you want to do and then you progressively affirm it on the canvas," he explains.

Later, he analysed shapes, construction, tones and colour. His talent became clearer, his teachers were astonished, he was already an artist at heart. Very early on, his work challenges and questions. The painter continues his way. In the 70's, Beaufils painted his first pictures, his pure sketches springing from a single line, the drawing is impulsive, the colour is frank. This talented colourist combines forms to create a cheerful atmosphere, revealing life, light and personality. He visits museums and galleries and devours art in all its forms. He guessed his masters, chose them, then tamed them: it was Matisse, Picasso, Braque, Dufy. From then on, the painter was totally absorbed by painting and took part in his first exhibitions, where he was immediately successful. First prizes followed, and exhibitions multiplied.

At the beginning of the 1980s, Beaufils was widely recognised in the galleries and his first personal exhibitions abroad began. His works can be admired on the gallery walls among the greatest. In group exhibitions, Van Dongen, Gen Paul, Raoul Dufy, André Lhote, André Derain, Gérard Schneider, Ladislas Kijno, César, Bernard Buffet... His paintings are sold in the United States, Japan and several European countries. A success without borders. The painter is happy, he is stubborn, tenacious, hard-working, seeks perfection and reaps the rewards of this ceaseless work through major exhibitions that quickly lead him to fame. For more than forty years, Beaufils has been faithful to the colour, to the material that he deploys on his canvases with agility and precision.

There is no repetition but a great homogeneity in his work. Beaufils' fame is affirmed with each exhibition, he fully owns his art in a multitude of subjects delivered raw from his imagination. "I paint all the time, my pleasure is to be in my studio where I try to be sincere, I have only gone a little way, I feel I am still far from having done all the work. In his studio, where countless works are piled up, we find all his ardour and love of painting. Sketchbooks filled with projects and memories are lying around. His imagination is fertile, his colours dazzle us, it is the artist in his entirety that reveals himself. When we talk about his work, he answers with modesty, integrity and sincerity. He shares with us his emotions, his joys and transmits to us all the strength that emanates from his being and dazzles us with his talent.

This long journey has led him to free himself little by little from his masters, his oils and gouaches are moving towards a very personal painting in which we recognize his sensitivity and his passion which envelops us, impregnates us, the artist is present in all his paintings. In all her exhibitions, the visitors are unanimous, her talent is recognized. His paintings are strikingly cheerful and fresh, they arouse great admiration and fill us with joy and delight. Beaufils is an enchanter! From New York to Los Angeles, the American public is won over. From Paris to Saint Tropez, the French are thrilled. His fame has spread beyond the borders, showbiz stars and visiting celebrities are shopping in the galleries. The undeniable success of the artist due to his talent is magnified by his simplicity and honesty. When the discussion begins, it is his heart that speaks, painting without bluff or embellishment. Beaufils enchants us. He takes us to limitless horizons where our imagination wanders through his works. His perfection seduces us. The perfectionist persists and signs.

Beaufils the phenomenon. The Beaufils phenomenon has been breaking price records in the largest auction rooms for several years. Prices are soaring. About twenty personal exhibitions criss-cross France, the success does not vary from one corner of the country to another. Permanently present in galleries across the Atlantic and in several European countries, his reputation is growing. Ranked by Le Figaro, Beaux Arts Magazine and Artprice among the 1,000 painters who made the world art market in 2007, all periods and all countries combined, the artist remains equal to himself, in simplicity and modesty. A phenomenon to be followed very closely.

Articles by the same author : Gen Paul and Raymond Lespinasse.