Watercolours according to Bernard Völlmy

VISITING THE ART GALLERY

Bernard Völlmy has built his career on a solid foundation of hard work, from attending technical vocational school to serving as mayor of his Swiss commune and as a member of the Vaud Grand Council. A member of La Maison des Artistes, the man who describes himself as a self-taught painter has signed ‘over 1,000 watercolours’ in a career spanning more than 40 years, between Switzerland and the Gard region.

There have also been monographs, published by Publi-Libris, books, a DVD entitled Peindre la montagne à l'aquarelle (Painting the mountain with watercolours, watch the presentation) produced in collaboration with Pratique des Arts and, above all, numerous international exhibitions...

And the opening of his Swiss gallery? Well... A wonderful combination of circumstances. In what was intended to be a professional premises, the artist created a gallery, the trigger for his artistic awareness and his professional turnaround. The art gallery became a showcase for the paintings, the low antique furniture becoming consoles and the walls holding bucolic subjects. Just perfect.

Bernard Völlmy, or the evolution of a style, through a variety of media, from drawing to oil painting. But only watercolour alone remains on the easel, for its malleable, flexible, almost living quality, the sketch slowly being completed along the filigree of the porous paper, absorbing the paint as the artist makes his brushstrokes, drinking in the texture and playing with the dilution of the colours.

Under the repeated strokes of the painter, who has become demanding in terms of technique, choice of brushes and colours, watercolour becomes a meticulous, almost academic work of art, which is quite amusing for someone who declares himself to be self-taught.

Prolific and passionate, the artist now devotes his time to his painting and to teaching the secrets of watercolour in his studio* in his gallery, now open all year round in Gattigues, in a tastefully renovated former farmhouse where he moved with his family in 2013. The choice of the south of France also came almost naturally, following courses given in Poulx for a dozen or so watercolour enthusiasts, an opportunity that arose following an article in the magazine Pratique des Arts.

The warm, old 18th-century vaults provide the perfect crucible for creative work. The patina of the furniture, the hushed atmosphere, the gentle curves and multiple spaces - this is the most fertile ground for the fresco to come, just like the Gard, which willingly submits itself to the quest for the subject that will be the basis of his next work. 

The painter's pupils? Amateurs ranging in age from 30 to over 90. When art brings generations together... Here too, it's all about atmosphere and togetherness, with some looking to improve their brushstrokes while others are already dreaming of a career change.

Olives rouges (Red olives) and Ganivelles d'Espiguettes (Espiguettes ganivelles) © Bernard Völlmy

Although the artist's painting courses are sometimes enjoyed solo, it's in groups (of less than 10 people) that they reveal their true potential, providing an opportunity to immerse oneself in the art of watercolour, sketching in the field where everything is colour, tracing, in notebooks made of that paper emblematic of draughtsmen Arches, with its ideal weight: From technique to the study of colours, working from red, yellow and blue, the three primary colours that he prefers.

Nature, which he admires, inspires him for the most part, giving him the peace and serenity he needs to create an authentic, almost confidential show, born in the roots of time in Switzerland and now in the Gard. This is what Bernard Völlmy wants to share with his students. 

To guide and supervise his pupils, the painter has also devised a series of innovative step-by-step notebooks , which, as the name suggests, follow the artist's subtle advice, from sketch to technique, from the evolution of the drawing to the addition of colour... A unique learning experience. What are the themes? The countryside, lavender, rocks and pebbles shimmering in the rivers, which appear underwater in a way that is quite incredible, I have to admit...

  Ruisseau aux écus (The river of the ecus) & gouille d'automne (Fall's gouille) © Bernard Völlmy

And what about the titles of the painter's canvases, the largest of which measured 1 m by 80 cm? Midi sept au cadran de mon arche (7 minutes past noon on the quadrant of my arch), Le virage aux platanes (The plane tree turn), Falaise d'ocre (Ocher cliff), Béantes hémérocalles (Yawning daylilies), Baignoire de chlorophylle (chorophyle tub), La vallée aux miroirs (The valley of mirors) or La planque de l'intrépide (The hide of the intrepid)... A world unto themselves.

Good to know: Alongside his studio courses in Gattigues, the artist also offers courses at the Forum des Pralies, in Vich, Switzerland.

Many thanks to Bernard Völlmy for his collaboration on this article and the visuals.

The right address: Galerie Völlmy, 40 place du café, Gattigues. Contact: Tel: 06 40 91 44 15, b.vollmy@etik.com or info@galerie-vollmy.com. Find Bernard Völlmy on his website, facebook or Instagram for all the latest news.