MUNTHE ART MONDAY: CAMILLE COTTIER
Please introduce yourself and tell us about what you do.
My name is Camille Cottier, I am 31 years old and I’m a painter. I graduated from the Fine Arts school in Angers in 2013 and I live and work in Paris. My work has long evolved around the body and questions of identity, and I have been exploring the same subject for ten years, featuring imaginary characters that I call Bonshommes. I have been represented for 4 years by the Marguerite Milin Gallery in Paris with whom I am currently preparing my 3rd personal exhibition for the month of June.
Could you explain more about how being a woman has affected your career?
I had the chance to meet my gallery owner Marguerite Milin quite early. She is a woman who wants to represent mostly women in her gallery. She also represents men, but I find her positioning very commendable when we think of the fact that female artists are still in the minority in art galleries today. I also participated twice in charity exhibitions for violence against women. Personally, I have not been negatively impacted by being a “female artist” and maybe I am lucky. I think there is movement and the desire to be as visible as men. But it will really be the case when we no longer need to mention the gender of the artist.
Being able to make a living from my passion was a small challenge at the beginning. As a woman, and especially as a painter I think you have to work harder when you're a woman. But once again, I had the chance to make important encounters that helped me, and still follow me today. It is very important to know who to surround yourself with, especially for self-confidence which is not always easy in an artist's life where there are a lot of unknowns and people questioning you.
Can you name some other female (artist) that inspires you and explain why they do so?
I can mention Cecilia Granara, Sophie Calle, Françoise Petrovitch, Claire Tabouret, Jenna Gribbon, Louise Bourgeois, Emma Kohlmann, Lynette boakye and Marlene Dumas. I like these artists because their paintings touch me personally. There is something intimate and inexplicable about it and at the same time it’s delivered with a very present fierceness. A paradox between something painful and sweet at the same time told with sincerity.
What would you like people to notice in your artwork?
I have always painted instinctively, my painting is an outlet, it is intimate and personal. I don't think about how people will notice my work, but how they will be impacted. If my painting touches them, whether it being negatively or positively, it is already a success to me.
Each Monday we bring you a fresh interview with a contemporary female artist.
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