When Art Was a Religion, Camille Saint-Jaques
HUFFINGTON POST
By David Galenson
FRANCE - Saint-Jacques was born in Colombes in 1956. Growing up he had little interest in school; his two passions were art and radical politics. His love of politics did not survive the 1980s, but his love of art did. He was fascinated by the American art he saw at Ileana Sonnabend's gallery in Paris, especially the work of Frank Stella and Robert Smithson. He studied art history in Paris, and became a teacher in Colombes, where he continued to work at painting. He sees a clear change in the values of the art world since the beginning of his career: "Fifty years ago, art was a religion. It was a question of faith. Now, there's no room for this. Art today is a market, an industry with hundreds of dealers. It has become like fashion. An artist has to change his style every six months to be successful. Success today is making art that surprises people--art that makes people say 'wow!'" [link]
By David Galenson
FRANCE - Saint-Jacques was born in Colombes in 1956. Growing up he had little interest in school; his two passions were art and radical politics. His love of politics did not survive the 1980s, but his love of art did. He was fascinated by the American art he saw at Ileana Sonnabend's gallery in Paris, especially the work of Frank Stella and Robert Smithson. He studied art history in Paris, and became a teacher in Colombes, where he continued to work at painting. He sees a clear change in the values of the art world since the beginning of his career: "Fifty years ago, art was a religion. It was a question of faith. Now, there's no room for this. Art today is a market, an industry with hundreds of dealers. It has become like fashion. An artist has to change his style every six months to be successful. Success today is making art that surprises people--art that makes people say 'wow!'" [link]
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