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ANTOINE POUPEL

MEET SAM SZAFRAN

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“My neighbor Sam Szafran (1934-2019) was a man, an artist, an extraordinary friend. We often ate lunch together, and we agreed to paint his portrait. More concerned with our shared friendly moments talking about our life, our journeys, current events, than with freezing a moment; time has passed too quickly. Sam bowed out, and it was his grave that I photographed. During a visit to his widow Lilette, regretting not having any memories in images of the friend Sam, finding me in his studio, the desire to photograph this place invaded me.

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It is a charged, magical universe that can be found in most of his paintings: endless stairs, exuberant vegetation, the presence of Lilette, his wife, numerous easels and hundreds of pastels. I took numerous photographs of his studio, a precious place where his presence is housed.

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Sam Szafran was considered to be the greatest French pastellist. It was a great honor, and a lot of emotion, when Lilette allowed me to come and work in Sam's studio and especially to use her pastels. I worked on my images by applying traces to them with pastels. I thus intended to continue our friendly bond, to find ourselves united in my work, to pay tribute to Sam giving him a colorful and lively existence...”

Antoine Poupel

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