Pierre Soulages

Born 1919

Born in Aveyron in southern France, Soulages was largely self-taught, taking up painting after moving to Paris in 1946. He initially used wood stain to make abstract paintings on paper and, by the 1950s, had begun using oil on canvas, creating gestural works that aligned him with American Abstract Expressionism. He is known for his concept of ‘Outrenoir’, or ‘Beyond Black’, using pure black pigment to create textural abstract works inspired by prehistoric art and Chinese calligraphy.