Bernard Aubertin was born in 1934 in Fontenay-aux-Roses, France.

In the 50s he was one of the founders and animators of the "Zero Group" in Düsseldorf in which participated, among others, Yves Klein, Piero Manzoni, Lucio Fontana, Enrico Castellani, Otto Piene, Günter Ueker. Its first red monochromes date back to this period.

His artistic activity took place initially in Paris and then from the 70s in Brest and for long periods between Brescia and Verona. Since 1990 he lives and works in Reutlingen in Germany with frequent stays in Brescia.

In addition to his "monochrome", he is known for the use of the combustion of different materials and objects, from books to musical instruments to model cars.

Above all, his notoriety is due both to the "dessin de feu" collages of matches, variously arranged in geometric shapes on a background cardboard and to which he is then set on fire obtaining a very suggestive result, and to his performances in which he burns pianos and real cars.  Aubertin dies in Reutlingen, Germany, on August 31, 2015

Bernard Aubertin - Informale (Informal)

The Informal was born after the Second World War involving both European and American artists. It can be considered the point of convergence of previous artistic experiences such as Cubism. Expressionism and Surrealism. The name itself shows that informal art is a formless art and therefore stands out from both figurative art and abstract art. In fact, figurative art is based on the representation of what is seen, while abstract art is essentially composed of geometric figures. Informal art to develop a work also uses unusual materials, just think of the jute bags and plastics of Burri or the matches of Aubertin. Informal art is also characterized by the use of forms that have a clear three-dimensionality, typically the works of Bonalumi and Castellani,which allow to play both on their distribution on the canvas floor and on the alternation of lights and shadows depending on the incident light. As mentioned, the Informale was a worldwide movement of which the German naturalized French Hans Hartung, the Swiss Schneider, the Zero Group were part; Pollock and De Kooning in the United States, group GUTAI in Japan with, among others, Shozo Shimamoto and Kazuo Shiraga. Tags: Informal - Aubertin - Bonalumi - Castellani

Bernard Aubertin - Analisi di Mercato

April 2017. Bernard Aubertin, an artist operating in Europe, particularly in France, Italy and Germany, had a rather asphyxiated market until 2005. In practice, his works were not required on the main market and therefore the prices were rather low, below 2000 euros even for not really small dimensions. Subsequently, the public notices this innovator of the artistic language, not for nothing took part of the Zero Group, beginning to appreciate its work. As a result, prices also start to rise, reaching 10,000 euros for average size. For the works of the 60s, rare and unobtainable, the quotations exceed 30,000 euros for medium size.

Art Curial, Paris 31/05/2017, Bernard Aubertin, Monochrome Rouge, oil on canvas, cm 55x46, 1960, estimate: € 15/20.000, price realized rights included: € 46.800

Bernard Aubertin - Contributi

The paintings, the nails, the tableau clous, are, as well as the fire and the red, a constant variable that is inscribed in the production of Aubertin. The declination of these three elements remains present in the current work as the obstinate sign of a practice that Aubertin imposes over time.

The work no longer brings into play only a smooth and colorful surface, but is expressed through the gesture, the body, the space and all the elements of nature. Yves Klein, whose closeness inspired Aubertin at the time, stated: "My paintings are nothing more than the ashes of my art". This statement acquires an even more significant character for Bernard Aubertin, whose work develops a constant relationship with fire in its elements, in particular the red that characterizes its luminous force. Through monochrome Aubertin practices what he calls pictorial silence ........... His research will find echo in Germany where he participates in the adventure of the Zero Group in Düsseldorf founded by Mack, Piene and Ucker.............. In his work Bernard Aubertin develops his affinity with the basic concept of the "tabula rasa" promoted by the Zero Group understood as the void that includes a set of other concepts, in particular the infinite and the nothingness, which the artists of the group tried to achieve through a work on monochrome. Dominique Stella, Giulianova 2012

Tags: Aubertin - Bernard Aubertin - Group Zero