Henri Ughetto
Henri Ughetto (1941–2011) developed a body of work profoundly shaped by a defining experience. In 1963, following a serious illness, he fell into a coma and was declared dead before returning to life several weeks later. This episode had a lasting impact on his reflection on the fragility of existence, the passage of time, and the desire for permanence. From then on, his work became an attempt to ward off disappearance through forms and rituals that celebrate both life and death.
The egg occupies a central place in this universe. A symbol of birth and regeneration, it recalls the myths of the cosmic egg found in many cultures, where it represents the origin of the world and of all life. Combined with the millions of drops of blood that cover his works, it forms part of the same meditation on the cycles of life. While blood evokes injury, mortality, and the memory of the body, it is also the very sign of life itself. In Ughetto’s work, these two inseparable motifs transform the anguish of disappearance into a steadfast celebration of the persistence of life.
His work was the subject of numerous solo exhibitions, including a major retrospective at the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon in 1984. Supported by several French galleries, he developed a poetic and inventive artistic universe that gained increasing recognition in France and abroad. He passed away in 2011.