Isabelle Pilloud

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Isabelle Pilloud (born July 12, 1963 in Freiburg im Üechtland ) is a visual artist from Switzerland . The condition féminine is central to her work . Much of her work aims to convey respect, admiration or a memory of well-known, but also of everyday women.

biography

Isabelle Pilloud grew up in Friborg and attended the cantonal teachers' seminar in Friborg from 1979 to 1984 . From 1986 to 1990 she obtained a teaching diploma for artistic design from René Guignard and Yves Voirol at the University of Bern . From 1990 to 2002 she worked with Yves Voirol. Until 1996 she lived in Freiburg and taught visual design. From 1996 to 2007 she lived in Berlin , where she earned her living with city tours. Since 2007 she has been living in Friborg / Switzerland again. She stays in Berlin regularly. In addition to painting, Pilloud devoted himself to art education at the Museum of Art and History Freiburg (MKGF) and teaches art education .

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Artistic approach

Isabelle Pilloud prefers authentic stories; she watches the women around her and tries to understand their situation, their nature. Her work initially began with self- portraits and portraits of other women. Then she looked for the woman outside of her direct circle of people: on the street, in pubs, at train stations. She wonders what drives a woman forward, whether and how she manages to develop.

In the chaussures-portraits series , Pilloud assumes that clothes are a shell for people; they make a choice apparent, create identity. These works portray women based on their favorite shoes. The absence of face and body makes it clear that it is not about beauty, youth or attractiveness. This unusual type of female portrait is about needs and values ​​that these images express: worn shoes that have come a long way speak for a woman with stamina, boots for her defensiveness and stability, dancer shoes for joy, movement and freedom, worn shoes from a woman who has worked a lot and from her transience.

In another series, the artist engages with Muslim women , whose headscarves cover a story of tradition or tension and conflict. The figure of the pars pro toto also returns in the flowing women's clothes in Pilloud's work. A woman's dress floats like an indistinct silhouette on a patterned background: the floating dress in the foreground contrasts with the fixed, uniform, static background. Urge, movement, longing stand in opposition to order, tradition and limitation. According to Walter Tschopp, art historian, this is how Pilloud's image strategy works: a provocative confrontation between a “block” of traditional decor and an “escape” in the heroine 's dress scurrying away.

Also boxing gloves are a recurring motif in Pillouds work. They symbolize the struggle of women for their recognition, their rights, for equality. She was inspired by the Afghan boxer Sadaf Rahimi in the film "Boxing for Freedom", who was the first woman to box in Afghanistan to be invited to the Olympic Games and who is a role model for many.

The artist uses various techniques and materials for her works: oil painting , oil pastel and ink , drawing, graphics , collage and installation .

Long-term project

In the long-term project «HÉROÏNES», which began several years ago, Pilloud collects stories from women from all over the world. At first it was women who were heroines for Pilloud. Later women were added who are perceived by the audience as heroines and who can make the world a better place. These include, for example, Malala , the Pakistani child rights activist, Emmeline Pankhurst , the British suffragette, Jeanne Mance , the French nurse and co-founder of Montreal, Estela de Carlotto , the Argentine fighter for the investigation of kidnappings and murders during the military dictatorship, Niki de Saint Phalle , the world famous artist, and also many unknown mothers and grandmothers. Pilloud met many of these heroines on her travels. The resulting works aim to stimulate questions about the position of women in society.

On a canvas with embroidered contours of the continents, visitors have attached glass beads in different colors. Each pearl symbolizes a personal heroine of the visitor. In this collaboration with the public, the Carte du monde des héroïnes develops as a work in progress . With this world map (or part of it) Pilloud made stops in Buenos Aires, Marrakech and the Atlas (Morocco), Japan, London and Canada and Switzerland.

A book entitled HÉROÏNES with 160 illustrations, photos and contributions by several art experts was published at the same time as the exhibition.

Loïse Bilat draws attention to the fact that Pilloud takes part in the political event and its political dimension, which it surpasses for an indefinite period of time through its power to arouse. The pictures show women and their society in which they develop: from the shoe portraits, for example the revenge on the life of Marie-Thérèse, who proudly presents her pumps after a confiscated childhood , to the series entitled Elles ont pris les armes ( “They took up arms”), where the entry of women into the struggle is precisely located in the network of the power relations surrounding them.

Exhibitions (selection)

Awards and grants

Press (selection)

Web links

Individual notes

  1. ↑ Pilloud, Isabelle. In: Sikart
  2. ↑ Isabelle Pilloud: Isabelle Pilloud / Démarche artistique. Retrieved May 25, 2020 (French).
  3. ↑ Pascale Jaquet Noaillon: À la découverte des femmes inspirantes . In: Le Quotidien jurassien . January 7, 2020, p. 7 .
  4. ↑ Isabelle Pilloud: Isabelle Pilloud / Bio. Retrieved April 25, 2020 (French).
  5. ↑ Isabelle Pilloud: Isabelle Pilloud / Démarche artistique. Retrieved April 25, 2020 (French).
  6. ↑ Isabelle Pilloud: Isabelle Pilloud / Démarche artistique. Retrieved April 25, 2020 (French).
  7. ↑ Walter Tschopp: Mouvements ou comment les femmes se déplacent de la margin au center . In: Héroïnes . Isabelle Pilloud. Editions Faim de Siècle, 2019, ISBN 978-2-940422-83-8 , p. 28 (French, English, published for the exhibition “Héroïnes” in Espace Jean Tinguely - Niki de Saint Phalle, Freiburg, from December 13, 2019 - August 16, 2020).
  8. ↑ RTS: “Heroines”, exposure to the porte haut la voie des femmes opprimées. January 7, 2020, accessed on May 20, 2020 (French).
  9. ↑ Isabelle Pilloud: Isabelle Pilloud / témoignages. (PDF) Retrieved April 25, 2020 (French).
  10. ↑ Isabelle Pilloud: Héroïnes . Éditions Faim de Siècle, 2019, ISBN 978-2-940422-83-8 (French, English, published for the exhibition "Héroïnes" at Espace Jean Tinguely - Niki de Saint Phalle, Freiburg, from December 13, 2019 - August 16, 2020 ).
  11. ↑ Loïse Bilat: Avec poor et bagages . In: Héroïnes . Isabelle Pilloud. Èditions Faim de Siècle, 2019, ISBN 978-2-940422-83-8 , p. 34–35 (French, English, published for the exhibition “Héroïnes” in Espace Jean Tinguely - Niki de Saint Phalle, Freiburg, from December 13, 2019 to August 16, 2020).
  12. ↑ heroines. In: museums.ch: The platform for museums in Switzerland. Retrieved April 26, 2020 .
  13. ↑ cs: The canton awards two art grants. In: Freiburger Nachrichten . February 4, 2016, accessed April 25, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Pilloud, Isabelle
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss artist
DATE OF BIRTH July 12, 1963
PLACE OF BIRTH Freiburg