Ladislas Kijno (1921–2012)
Master of Abstraction and Poet of the Fold
A leading figure of French abstraction, Ladislas Kijno stands out as one of the most distinctive artists of the 20th century.
Inventor of a unique crumpling and spraying technique, he transforms matter into energy, canvas into breath. His pictorial gesture — both violent and spiritual — resonates with the poets he admired, such as Louis Aragon, Francis Ponge, and Jean Grenier, his former philosophy teacher.
Of Polish origin and settled in France since the 1920s, Kijno moved through his century with intensity: committed, mystical, and visionary. His works pay homage to Nicolas de Staël, Galileo, Gagarin, Nelson Mandela, and to the struggles of the Algerian and Vietnamese peoples.
Invited to the Venice Biennale in 1980, he also created several monumental pieces, including the iconic rose window of Notre-Dame de la Treille in Lille, completed after nine years of work.
Until the very end, Kijno painted as if painting were breathing. His canvases pulse with a telluric force — a blend of philosophy, humanism, and the turmoil of the world.
An oeuvre both mystical and visceral, forever suspended between cry and prayer.
