Jacques V Lemaire

Born in the Ardennes on the banks of the river Ourthe in 1949. Discovered Memling in Bruges at the age of 12 or 13. Makes theatre, writes, sets up a troupe. Never draws except houses with curtains and smoking chimneys, elephants, palm trees, market forts. Passionately frequents exhibitions, auction rooms, art books, churches, museums. Learns to look and understands (or claims to understand himself that he understands, who knows!) that appearance is a decoy. After graduating in Law from the UCL, he was admitted to the Namur Bar in 1973 and on 30 June 2002 he stopped being a lawyer to devote himself to painting, which he has been practising as a self-taught artist since the end of 1992. He then left for Seville where he lived for a few years, scrutinising the city and escorting its secrets in all its folds, crossing Andalusia in all directions, especially the Sierras, where he sometimes spent many days alone. Feels good in the woods, but also in the cities. He has left the banks of the Meuse river to find his Ardennes of schist and water: he lives in a rough little village, and when it snows flakes do him the honour of twirling around in his workshop… Favourite painters: practically all of them, from Memling to De Kooning, all but the skilful and beautiful ones.