ᐅ Pâtisseries by Philippe Hortala (1987) | Painting

Artwork information

Technique

Acrylic on canvas

Date

1987

Dimensions

50 cm x 50 cm

Dimensions with frame56 cm x 56 cm

Signature

Signed lower right

State of conservation

Very good

Framing

Yes

Location

Toulouse, France

Description

Philippe Hortala — Pâtisseries, 1987

Created in 1987, this work by Philippe Hortala fully reflects the singular visual language developed by the artist during the late 1980s, at the crossroads of narrative figuration and a more sensitive form of abstraction. Here, Hortala transforms an everyday subject into an almost monumental composition, where pastry forms become the basis for a deeper exploration of perception, color, and rhythm.

The composition plays with shifts in scale and tightly cropped framing, giving the pastries an almost architectural presence. The forms appear suspended in space, while the bold outlines characteristic of the artist reinforce the graphic tension of the composition. The viewer constantly moves between figurative reading and abstract construction.

The particularly vibrant palette combines acidic yellows, pale greens, deep blues, and luminous orange tones in a striking harmony typical of Philippe Hortala’s major works. This use of color, combined with a subtly textured surface, gives the painting an immediate visual intensity while maintaining a high level of sophistication in its construction.

Through this seemingly simple scene, Hortala develops a painting in which everyday objects become signs, mental forms, or fragments of memory. This constant ambiguity between reality and interpretation remains one of the defining characteristics of his work.

An important figure in the French artistic scene of the second half of the twentieth century, Philippe Hortala developed an immediately recognizable body of work marked by strong graphic construction, remarkable freedom in color, and an atmosphere often permeated by a quiet sense of strangeness. Today, his work occupies a distinctive place within the landscape of contemporary French painting.

Dimensions: 50 x 50 cm (56 x 56 cm framed). Signed and dated “Hortala 87” lower right.

The artist

Painter

Philippe Hortala

Born in 1960

France

Bio

Philippe Hortala is an artist from Toulouse. This cheerful man loved his native city. After graduating from the Beaux-Arts of Toulouse in 1983, he moved to Barcelona for nine months, where he painted his "Vues de Barcelone" series. In 1986, he opened a joint studio in Blagnac with Clément Thomas, Alain Fabre and Daniel Bonnal.

After his so-called "Punk" years, the artist changed his method and immersed himself in "Les Jours heureux", a series of paintings that stemmed from his vision of the world.

In 1987, he obtained a grant from the Honenberg Foundation and stayed in New York. Two years later, he returned to live in Toulouse and remained there until his death in 1998. At the same time, he often travelled to Naples in Italy until 1991. He painted many views of the city and notably painted the series of "Combat du poulpe et de la langouste".

Between 1992 and 1997, the artist from Toulouse worked on the "Fraisiers et des Potagers" series and also created sculptures on the theme of food, using kitchen utensils. He also represented birds using gardening tools.

Hortala died on October 2, 1998 in his studio in Toulouse, he was found dead by his father-in-law.

Philippe Hortala died while tinkering in his studio in Toulouse on October 2, 1998, his father found him dead. In the little primer of the artist Ben entitled La vérité de A à Z, we discover, between the word "horizon" and "humor", "Hortala", that Ben defines as the "Little King-Kong of Toulouse".