Mathilde wrote: “It was during Avignon Festival that I first saw drawings by François Olislaeger. I was instantly struck by that work which I believe provided a better opportunity to represent dance than photography. Not only did these images restore all their dimension to movements and the stage, they also made it possible to incorporate texts, which for me are essential since they are connected with what is at work in my shows. There are very few illustrated books on dance, let alone comics. Still, most choreographers draw to memorise ideas. I felt there was real potential for a fantastic editorial project, a medium of invention and creativity likely to take forward and widen my stage work…”
Childhood, encounters, collaborations, coincidences and accidents of life arousing the imagination and inspiration… This extraordinary graphic work spans the whole journey of a high-profile choreographer building on 5 of her major pieces.
Olislaeger’s “clear line” style becomes a precision tool in the hands of the 2 authors who completely trust each other, to bring the subtleties and emotions of pure creativity up to date. How to move from life to art? What mirror are these amazing choreographies blending all sorts of disciplines – music, literature, poetry, politics, philosophy, psychoanalysis, etc. – on a single stage, holding out to us? Mathilde Monnier’s humour, grace and fragility are depicted in a vibrantly human story that will delight anyone who is inspired, carried away and enchanted by dance.
Mathilde Monnier has been Director of Montpellier ‘Centre chorégraphique national’ since 1993. Over her 30-year career she created about 50 dance pieces, often in collaboration with artists working in other fields – Rodolphe Burger, Philippe Katerine, Jean-Luc Nancy, Christine Angot, etc. In 2005 she was the subject of a documentary by film director Claire Denis, Vers Mathilde.
François Olislaeger was born in Liège in 1978. Combining his drawing with his taste for all forms of artistic expressions, he explores the multiple dimensions of that medium. Cartoon documentaries (Un autre monde est possible), forays into contemporary art (Echoesland, with Pauline Fondevila, Denoël Graphic collection, 2005), daily blog during Avignon Festival (2005-2008), editorial cartoons (Le Monde, Libération, Les Inrocks, Beaux-Arts).