More than 20 years
Jocelyn Akwaba Matignon
art as a quest for meaning
More than 20 years
Painting
Jocelyn Akwaba Matignon draws his inspiration from observations he has made in different parts of the world... The symbol used to sign his canvases is a triangle, the vertices of which trace the different stages of his artistic journey. Standing in Jocelyn's studio, I'm impressed by the high ceilings, which allow him to exhibit large formats, sometimes 3 meters high. This height makes his work all the more masterly.
"Art is there to help us contemplate, to take our time. To help us discern the beauty of the world... Because art encourages us to stop, look and be in the moment."
An initiatory journey through art, Kioukan in all its forms
Jocelyn Akwaba Matignon was born on December 25, 1961 in Pointe à Pitre, Guadeloupe.
He left his island and arrived in Northern France at the age of 4.
Francis, his adoptive father, who during the Algerian war drew postcards and soldiers' letters, introduced him to drawing and painting at an early age, helping him to develop his artistic sensibility.
After computer studies and a career in this field, he turned to glassblowing and became a master glassblower.
Having mastered this technically challenging field, and driven by a desire to express something other than handcrafted creation, at the age of 28 he enrolled at the École d'Art de la Roche sur Yon in the Vendée region, then at the École des Beaux-Arts in Angers.
For him, the École des Beaux-Arts was a revelation and a rich source of inspiration in his personal quest. His knowledge of Art History and the great masters of painting triggered a fascination for pictorial art and a desire to contribute, participate and enrich the path of artistic research.
In 2003, he returned to his homeland to paint and work.
Solo exhibitions
2023
« Las voces del silencio : Dialogo entre arte y arqueologia », travelling exhibition as part of the tenth Latin American and Caribbean Weeks
- Muséo Nacional de Arte de Guatemala in Antigua Guatemala in collaboration with the Ministry of External Relations of the Republic of Guatemala (MINEX)
- In collaboration with the city of Saint Pierre Martinique - Martinique
- Arawak Beach Resort, Le Gosier - Guadeloupe
2022
« Canoës Cosmiques »
- Tropiques Atrium Scène Nationale, Martinique
- Arawak Beach Resort, Guadeloupe
2021
« Le Chant des Seigneurs », Arawak Beach Resort, Guadeloupe
2019
« Aguas Calientes » » – Spanish Cooperation and Alliance Française - Antigua de Guatemala
Collaboration and artistic exchange with Daniel Garriga (Cuban stylist) - Arawak Beach Resort, Guadeloupe
2017
« Ixchel, la déesse de la lune », L153 Gallery, Seoul, South Korea
Exhibition Gala Evening (Charity) BCCK (British Chamber of Commerce in Korea) - SEOUL 2016 - Plaza Hotel
2016
« De l’infini au centre », Korean Foundation Gallery – Séoul – part of the France-Korea year 2015-2016
« De l’infini au centre », Gallery L153 Seoul, South Korea
Memorial Act, Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe
2015
« Le Maître des Mystères », La Vieille Tour, Le Gosier, Guadeloupe
« Les Nocturnes », Michelle Cazanove Gallery, Le Gosier, Guadeloupe
« Les plumes de Kukulkan », Espace Coté Est, Romainville
2014
« Les 33 de Bon Gré », Le Select, Paris
« Les chercheurs de l’existence », Media library of Lamentin, Guadeloupe
2012
Exhibition with Joby Bernabé, Ets Blandin, Baie-Mahault, Guadeloupe
2009
« À la reprise », Le jardin de Malanga, Trois-Rivières, Guadeloupe
2003
« Mass & bwa bwa », Modub’Art Gallery, Paris
2001
« L’esprit de la terre », Le temple du goût, Nantes
1999
Exhibition at Château de Gisors, Normandy, France
1996
Espace d'Art Contemporain Onyx, St Herblain, France
Council of Europe, Strasbourg, France
1992
Rablay sur Layon artists' village
Collectives exhibitions
2023
On tour London, The Crypt Gallery, London
On tour, Italia, Artexpertise Galerie Florence, and Galerie Tolomeo Milan
Prizm Art Fair, Miami
IVX Florence Biennale, Italy
2022
Black Market exhibition, Gosier, Guadeloupe
Art Ruche exhibition, Davos art group, Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe
2021
Charity exhibition with ONG Vision du monde 2021 - Saint Gilles street, Paris, France
“Divine Feminine”, La Batelière, Martinique
2019
Achillea Gallery, Greece
2017
AAF (Affordable Art Fair) Singapore 2017, F1 FIT Building, Singapore
SCAF (Seoul Collector Artists Fair) SEOUL 2017, Intercontinental Hotel, Seoul
AAF (Affordable Art Fair) New York 2017 – Metropolitan Pavillon New York, USA
2016
AHAF (Asia Hotel Art Fair) SEOUL 2016 – JW Marriott Hotel Seoul – 15th edition
AAF (Affordable Art Fair) SEOUL 2016 – Dongdaemun Digital Plaza (DDP)
2015
Biennale d’art contemporain, Le Marin, Martinique
Biennale d’art contemporain, La Rochelle, France
2013
« 3° rencontres d’Art et d’Histoire, Art et Spiritualité, des Amérindiens à nos jours », Trois-Rivières, Guadeloupe
Summer Show II, Galerie T&T, Guadeloupe___2013_Pool Art Fair, Guadeloupe
2011
Espace Pierre Cardin, Grand Palais, Paris, France
Carrousel du Louvre, Paris, France
2003
« D’un triangle, une route, une expression plurielle », Espace Sorano, Vincennes, France
Espace l’Harmatan, Paris, France
2001
Arte-Viva Gallery, Levallois-Perret, France
2000
Espace Mendès-France, Niort, France
1999
Espace des Latitudes, Nantes, France
1st Prize, Salon des Peintres d'Outre-Mer, Espace Reuilly, Paris, France
1998
“D'Afrique aux Amériques et Retour”, Collective exhibition, Oudin Gallery, Paris, France
1997
1st Prize “L'Art en marche”, Hôtel du Département de la Vendée, La Roche sur Yon, France
Salon des Peintres d'Outre-Mer, Espace Reuilly, Paris, France
1996
« L’Art magique, les bricoleurs de l’imaginaire », Saffré, France
Salon des Peintres d’Outre-Mer, Espace Reuilly, Paris, France
1995
« Difé Kréyol », Le Rayon Vert Gallery, Nantes, France
1994
Salon des Peintres d'Outre-Mer, Espace Reuilly, Paris, France
Ministry of Economy, Salon Victor-Choquet, Paris, France
“Young Painting, Young Sculpture”, Town hall of Courbevoie, France
Salon d'art contemporain, Saint-Sébastien-sur-Loire, France
1st Young Painting Prize, Hôtel Lutecia, Paris, France
1993
Le Rayon Vert Gallery, Nantes, France
Manufacture des tabacs, Nantes, France
Espace Kronenbourg, Paris, France
« Marron, Marroon, Mawon, Cimarron », Les Anneaux de la Mémoire, Château des Ducs de Bretagne, Nantes, France
1992
Ville d’Angers – Salon d’arts Plastiques, La Rochelle, France