Baptiste Caccia delights in ephemeral and multiple layers of Abstraction

Baptiste Caccia (b.1988) is concentrated on artworks developed by the creative integration and processing of photographs. The art of reproduction and painterly additions on canvas –in inimitable abstract style– consist the foundations of his artistic practice. Caccia first draws attention to the values related to the art of photography. He examines the photographic material and then starts the repetitive process through reproduction, which renders an alternative outcome of perception and interpretation on canvas. The artist makes abstract compositions in which the surface of the canvas is the process of a long and repetitive work.
Words: Yannis Kostarias
Frari sur le reflet du bateau du Paulo n1, 2017, Courtesy: Baptiste Caccia
Here, the technique of silkscreen, which was widely used by Rauschenberg and Warhol, plays a significant role in the artist’s practice. The way the ink is spread around the screen is shaping the conditions of the image. Furthermore, the repetitions keep changing the resulting image so that a new body of work is constructed. The continuous deconstruction of the initial image through excessive erasure enables Caccia to experiment and to finally transform his artwork.
Frari sur le reflet du bateau de Paulo n2, 2017, Courtesy: Baptiste Caccia
Caccia’s laboriously worked compositions are full of a poetic allure; something between an ethereal abstraction and the deliberate process of making. Illustrating a continuous engagement with the process as well as with the physicality of making his paintings –rather than a direct involvement with a pre-selected subject or image– the French artist seems to concentrate on the random instances while painting. This flexibility develops a strong of sense of freedom releasing the reproduction process. The quality of light and colour on canvas also reveals an unintentional pale colour palette with minimal tones and contrasts. For Caccia, his canvas is not a fixed, finite space; instead, it is a space that enables him to create a new space within space.
Born in France, Caccia lives and works in Paris. He studied at the Ecole Regionale des Beaux Arts in Rennes in 2008 and then at the Ecole National Superieure des Beaux Arts in Paris where he graduated in 2013.
In his interview with ArtVerge, Caccia shares his approach on art issues and provides some interesting answers about his daily life in a distinctive straightforward style. And there is definitely a sense of humour in the air. Check it out!
Frari sur le reflet du bateau de Paulo, 2017, Courtesy: Baptiste Caccia
Art Verge: Can you tell us about the process of making your work? 
Baptiste Caccia: To be honest, I walk in the street and I take picture it could be a future painting after I think about how it could be a painting
How would you define your work in few words (ideally in 3 words)?
Photography, reproduction, and sense of humour.
Can you name any artists you, lately or generally, take inspiration from?
Sigmar Polke

When was the latest video you watched on social media and had an impact on your mood? Which one?
“La revitalisation biologique des sols” avec Claude Bourguignon. [YouTube Link]
Creating a new painting is a solitary process. If this applies to you, when you concentrate on a new artwork does it affect your social life at all?
Not at all, sometimes my friends come at the studio to paint with me.
How do you know when a painting is finished? 
When the process is finished.

What about the place where you work? What’s your studio space like, and how does it affect your process?
I have two studios: One where I make silkscreen (it’s a small studio) and another with more space to paint and to display.
The affect is that the paintings travel a lot, and I have time to think about during the different steps.
Which exhibition did you visit last?
The retrospective of David Hockney.

What do you hope audiences will take from your work?
David Hockney??
Are you a morning person or a night owl? 
I sleep at 2 am or 3 am and I wake up at 8 am. I think I am a morning owl.
Is the glass half empty or half full?
It depends if it’s beer or water.
Which are your plans for the near future? 
making monet.

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