AB-MP2-1957-003 — Rotation (1957)

Technical information

Title: Rotation
Date: 1957
Technique: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 65 × 81 cm
Location: Private collection

Biographical / historical context

The theme of rotation runs through Breuillaud’s work in the mid-1950s, as he seeks to translate movement as an autonomous principle, detached from motif. After the ellipses and whirlwinds of 1956, 1957 brings a radicalisation: the curve is no longer a simple frame; it becomes a trajectory.

Rotation condenses this research: the composition is neither landscape nor scene, but a dynamic device in which curves and angles organise a sensation of centripetal pull and release, like a mechanism under tension.

The circulation of a black-and-white studio photograph bearing the number “57” at lower right in the documentation indicates the existence of an atelier classification or record at that date; this clue accords with the title and the artist’s preoccupations at the time.

Formal / stylistic description

The composition is dominated by arcs of circle that overlap and intersect, creating the impression of a wheel, a compass in action, or a recorded trajectory. Lighter zones emerge like points of impact, while angular segments interrupt the flow and introduce syncopation: the eye is sometimes carried by the curve, sometimes stopped by a clean cut.

In the monochrome reproduction, the play of values—from deep grey to bright whites—reveals the architecture of movement: forms seem to coil around an implicit centre, then rebound toward the periphery.

Rubbings and density variations suggest a matter worked in layers, with some passages more fused and others more abrasive, reinforcing the idea of energy. The final sensation is that of a pulse: an alternation of tensions (lines, angles) and releases (curves, softened zones) that gives the painting a continuous internal dynamic.

Comparative analysis / related works

Rotation directly extends the 1956 works centred on dynamics (ellipses, whirlwinds) such as The Mistral (AB-MP1-1956-004), by radicalising the reduction of motif: here the oval and curve no longer frame a recomposition; they become the subject itself.

In relation to the urban compositions of 1956–1957, the work belongs to a more “energetic” abstraction, where space is produced by trajectory rather than by stacking planes. It can also be associated with researches exploring rocking motion and driving diagonals; here those vectors are absorbed into a circular logic, as if the canvas recorded a continuous movement without origin or end.

The piece thus appears as a hinge toward more rhythmic and structural works of the late 1950s.

Justification of dating and attribution

The dating 1957 is supported by stylistic coherence with the movement experiments observed between 1956 and 1957: emphasis on arcs, internal circulation, and the reduction of figurative indices.

The work is signed at lower right in white, as noted in the documentation. The black-and-white studio photograph bearing the number “57” provides an additional clue in favour of the dating and the work’s place within Breuillaud’s corpus. The formal vocabulary (curves, value contrasts, angular cuts) is fully compatible with his writing of this period.

Provenance / exhibitions / publications

Provenance: Private collection.

Publications: black-and-white photo bearing the number “57” at lower right (studio documentation).