This work belongs to the worksite of painted objects that began in 1980, in which the artist uses a wardrobe, a camera, paintings or pianos and covers them with paint that is identical to the colour of their surface, down to the smallest detail. Lavier says that with these works he paints “on the spot”, taking in the most literal sense the expression used by the painters of the late 19th century who went out to paint nature on the spot. This is his way of responding to the artistic context of the 1980s, which saw a return to the most classical figurative painting. Playing with words and concepts, Lavier actually paints or represents a chair, by painting on the chair.
In contrast to the colour, which remains faithful to the appearance of the object, the pictorial material is cheerfully noticeable thanks to the large, clearly visible brushstrokes, which Lavier describes as ‘Van Gogh-like’. Is this humour about art lovers’ attachment to the tormented work of the cursed painter? Is it a question of what makes an object a work of art? Or is it figurative painting? Orange Eames embodies all three facets at once.