NEW ORLEANS GRIS-GRIS MAN

DuFauve, Christian DuFauve, artist, art, modern art, painter, contemporary artist, poet, visionary, philosopher, alchemist, politician, pragmatist, phantom, phantom artist, phantom art gallery project, stolen art, wordsmith, poets, poetry, canvas, famous, New Orleans, mojo, gris-gris, acrylic, Crescent City, Big Easy, French Quarter, arts, artists, DuFauve, readings, crafts, fine artists, fine art services, contemporary arts, modern artists, art resource, resources, alternative art, venue, open studios, art sites, art links, crafts, artists, fine arts, art history, Christian DuFauve, major artist, contemporary, famous artist, famous painter, art exhibition, land art, conceptual art, art forgery, environmental art, artists modern and contemporary art, visual artist, fauvism, post impressionism, dada, surrealism, futurism, cubism, art deco, art nouveau, die brucke, blaue reiter, paintings, cobra, de stijl, minimal, pop art, op art, installation art, multimedia, design, modern artists, contemporary artists, expressionism, bauhaus, arte povera, fluxus, contemporary, modern art, constructivism, suprematism, twentieth century, artworks, portraits, visual, major, links, art, artists, artist directory, modern art gallery, venues, biography, artist search, sculpture artist, print artist, artist by genre, famous artist, abstract artist, graphic artist, fine art, art print, art gallery, art history, painters, painting, watercolor, pastels, drawing, drawings, illustration, artist and gallery art, artist portfolio, artist materials, brushes, paint, pencils, pastels, markers, easels, Mr. Christian DuFauve, black and white

NEW ORLEANS GRIS-GRIS MAN PUTS A SPELL ON HEART AND SOUL WITH HIS POWERFUL IMAGERY
By Tupelo Magritte (1996)

     In the heart of the "Big Easy" lurks the inscrutable artist, Christain Mattphisto DuFauve. The artist, like his work, remains a modern mystery of sorts.
     Christian "Mojo" DuFauve's work hovers somewhere between realism and abstraction. Figures may emerge, then disappear, with rapid explosiveness, or they may assume a calculated presence - a sort of Aquinian presence around which micro-universes revolve.
     DuFauve's style of execution is unrestrained. Torquing the juxtapositions of black and white to a fevered pitch, exuberance is all too self evident in his approach to his work. His preoccupation with pictorial renderings are spared unnecessary complications by the addition of a full color palette. It is unfair to say he has abandoned color, rather he severely limits its role as his concerns seem to lie elsewhere, that being in the startlingly eccentric graphic impact of his imagery which is both revealing and puzzling.
     DuFauve has created a personalized iconography which can be considered poignant at times and quite vicious at others. It is not a serene world portrayed by DuFauve. Rather, it is turbulent, but not without an ironic sense of humor. The adage "grin and bear it" seems a recurrent theme in some of his paintings.

"THE NAGGING WIFE", Christian DuFauve Acrylic on canvas, 30"w x 30"h

     Yet, DuFauve's work remains suggestive rather than specific, obviously affected by the mysterious dynamics that fuel the artist and his impulses to create.
     There is a tantalizing rawness to the work, a methodology that employs drips and splashes as effectively as lines through which the artist achieves a freshness born of indulgent intensity.
     Of course, the work of DuFauve is resonant with some historical references. Figures recall elements of Jean DuBuffet and more recently, the artist, Penck. Comic strips, like the work of S. Clay Wilson, Australian aboriginal rock paintings and urban graffiti also come to mind. At times, the paintings suggest tribal totems touched by modernity. But DuFauve maintains his individuality and identity as a painter. No appropriations, just vague recollections of the past, mere fleeting glimpses to remind one of the sophisticated intellect that is responsible for these brash, yet complex, forays.
     A cultivated sense of mystery surrounds DuFauve's work, much as our own inner workings remain elusive to our own understanding. So, not surprisingly, little is known about Christian DuFauve's background or life. He is extremely reclusive and will deal with the "outside" world only throughcarefully selected intermediaries. It is known, however, that he is a ju-juman and this may account for his shunning open contact. But his obvious mastery of his chosen medium survives unchallenged and as undeniable. Even without the intimate details of his personal life, the man's work continues to speak for itself.