I was introduced last year to Verdilly’s world by Guillaume Sebastien, an old Paris friend of mine, who also happens to be a contemporary art dealer. Little was said about the artist at the time; the emphasis instead was left on the works to speak for themselves.

And they do. One can hear the silence in Verdilly’s High Reliefs, whether in a sea or desert scene, always inhabited by incongruous figures and trees, or in his "people scenes", where isolated figures are depicted walking or running, all in their own world. A serene quality emanates from these works, which evokes the poetry of St Exupéry and the "Little Prince", whose kinship is often alluded to by a yellow scarf.

A strange universe is created by the artist, where separate figures, though alone, are infused by a magical serenity mixed with a changing other-worldliness. The atmosphere is strongly redolent of that in Surrealist works.

In the words of Guillaume Sebastien: ‘These are 3D paintings, "High reliefs", on which shadows projected by the light of day or by an evening lamp introduce a discreet and changing life. These are works to dream about".

ARTIST'S CV

2013 Solo exhibition Bernard Chauchet Contemporary Art
2004 Solo exhibition “Galerie Guillaume”, Paris
1991 First exhibiton at the Grand Palais, Paris
1989 Begins his “High Reliefs” after a brain accident
1988 Works for 6 months in the desert (Saoudi Arabia)
1975 Studies Biology at the university of Orsay
1954 Born in Arras, France