During the 1960s, when the suburbs was drastically changing, the art critic,
Jean Rollin, a very good friend of Boris, offered him to create, for the northeast municipalities of Paris (Saint-Ouen, La Courneuve, Stains, Bobigny, Drancy, Épinay-sur-Seine), a series of 63 drawings representing typical views of these cities. The artist chose different point of views to deliver an overview of the situation so that the « red belt » undergoing important changes at that time will be remembered.
Executed with ink 19,7 x 25,6 in paper, this remarkable collection of drawings suggests an historical yet poetic dimension. From old buildings to ancient passages and alleys and streets filled with small shops, cafes and a hotel bearing the sign: "cosy rooms for travellers", to green fields, churches, markets, bridges, railways, indefinite landscapes, factories, the suburban street alignments, installations and public buildings (town hall, cultural centres, post office, stadium, tec.), crossroads, apartments and cities as well as large modern living arrangements.
These landscapes are frequently filled with characters that look at us, the viewers These are passers-by, children, workers or farmers.
The way these images were made confers them the power to function autonomously. However, the sequence of fragmentary and metonymical representations is capable of rendering the atmosphere of the time in the five towns' suburbs.
Based on a drawing made in Epinay-sur-Seine, the magisterial trait and application of ink on white paper allows us to follow the creator of these drawings through his daily sojourns from the beginning of 1965 to the winter of 1970, and in 1972. Based on site and date of realisation drawings can be divided in:
- Saint-Ouen 17 drawings made from January 22nd 1965 to September 21st 1966,,
- La Courneuve 15 drawings realised from July 31st to December 13rd 1968,
- Stains, 6 drawings made from May 22nd to June 18th 1969,
- Bobigny, 10 drawings made from April 4th until May 28th 1970,
- Drancy, 10 drawings made from July 17th until the September 18th 1970,
- Épinay-sur-Seine, 5 drawings, 4 of which executed in December 1970 and another realised May 9th 1972 and marking the end of the suburbs drawing series..
Thanks to Daniel Jagodzinski who photographed 46 drawings before their dispersion between the 5 towns, we are able to present the complete series. The photographs of 17 drawings belonging to the Saint-Quen collection have been lent by the "Archive and Heritage" department of the town.
Unfortunately, a significant number of drawings are still missing today. An investigation was launched by the La Courneuve town's Cultural services department. We really hope this enquiry is successful so that this cultural treasure can be restored. As Boris Taslitzky requested before his death, this will allow for the organisation to display a complete exhibition – one which will undoubtedly be a perfect setting to appreciate this exceptional artistic series.
Isabelle ROLLIN-ROYER
GALLERY
