Christian de Laubadère

The short Miami jaunt this past weekend saw my encounter with artist Christian de Laubadère's exquisite series of works The Necks—paintings that are filled with delicate, feminine regalness and sensual sophistication—displayed at the Setai Hotel. It was an instant love affair which has left me entranced and besotted still now. The neck (in particular the nape), along with hands, are what I consider to be the most beautiful, narrative and poetic parts of a woman's body. Christian de Laubadère combines the nape with intricately detailed depictions of different hairstyles through Chinese history (especially those of the Tang and Qing dynasties), and a subtle hint of colours in vintage embroidered/printed fabrics or lace which he sources from China as well as France, to evoke a sense of faded, ethereal, mysterious grandeur, hearkening back to a poetical world of nostalgia.

The Necks 2003-2006
The Necks 2007-2008
Christian de Laubadère exhibition at the Stephanie Hoppen Gallery, London.

(Above two) Christian de Laubadère's paintings as displayed at Hotel Setai, Miami.





About the Artist (text taken from his official website)

Christian de Laubadère began living and working in Shanghai in 2001.

The series of 137 paintings displayed in the Hotel Setai (Miami) and the most recent 21 paintings shown in Shanghai are a reflection of Christian's fascination with the sophistication and sensuality of women, past and present. He paints on paper and canvas using lead pencils, smoke and charcoal as well as printed and embroidered fabric selected from China and France.

His signature in Chinese characters is "Lu" (麓 foot of the mountain) and "Mi" (冪 power) directly translated from a nickname of his childhood "Loumi" which means "my favourite one" in French dialect from Gascogne province.