the text reads "I am the fool of the woods,
a man is not intelligent because he is cultivated"
Chomo, as he called himself, was born as Roger Chomeaux on January 28, 1907, in the community of Berlaimont in the north of France. As a young man he already had a passion for art and so he went to an art school in Valenciennes (1921-1925) and to l´École des Beaux Arts in Paris (1926-1928),
In the thirties he had a job as a decorator of carpets. During World War II for some years he has been deported to Poland. Back in France he probably had the same kind of job, but he was also active in making art (gouaches, ceramics, experiments with film). In the summer months Chomo and his family would reside in kind of a summerhouse on a plot of land he had bought in Achères la Forêt, in the woods south of Paris.
In 1960 he had an exposition in a art gallery in Paris (Jean Camion, Rue des Beaux Arts). It was a great succes, especially in circles of surrealists. However, Chomo did not agree in selling the most important and expensive works.
.
In the next years he began developing the summerhouse in Achères into an art environment, making a variety of constructions and buildings by recuperating all kinds of materials like plastics, old wood and dead trees.
These constructions got names like l´Église des Pauvres (the Church of the Poor), le Sanctuaire des Bois Brûlés (The Shrine of Burned Woods) and le Refuge (the Shelter). These buildings were used to store and show his smaller creations.
From the mid sixties on Chomo would permanently reside in the woods, amidst his creative constructs, being active in all kind of artistic projects, like painting and sculpturing, making carpets, but also writing poems, making music and doing films..
He would not consider himself to be an outsider or art brut artist, but said he made art préludien (preludian art, his art -and way of life as an ecologist avant la lettre- being a prelude to the world to come).
Although Chomo had a formal training in art schools, he would not actively participate in the regular world of art, and in the sixties he somehow retreated from society too, going to live in the woods of Fontainebleau, south of Paris.
Generally speaking, the interest in his work has mainly come from those who love outsider art and art brut.
Life and works
In the thirties he had a job as a decorator of carpets. During World War II for some years he has been deported to Poland. Back in France he probably had the same kind of job, but he was also active in making art (gouaches, ceramics, experiments with film). In the summer months Chomo and his family would reside in kind of a summerhouse on a plot of land he had bought in Achères la Forêt, in the woods south of Paris.
In 1960 he had an exposition in a art gallery in Paris (Jean Camion, Rue des Beaux Arts). It was a great succes, especially in circles of surrealists. However, Chomo did not agree in selling the most important and expensive works.
.
In the next years he began developing the summerhouse in Achères into an art environment, making a variety of constructions and buildings by recuperating all kinds of materials like plastics, old wood and dead trees.
These constructions got names like l´Église des Pauvres (the Church of the Poor), le Sanctuaire des Bois Brûlés (The Shrine of Burned Woods) and le Refuge (the Shelter). These buildings were used to store and show his smaller creations.
From the mid sixties on Chomo would permanently reside in the woods, amidst his creative constructs, being active in all kind of artistic projects, like painting and sculpturing, making carpets, but also writing poems, making music and doing films..
He would not consider himself to be an outsider or art brut artist, but said he made art préludien (preludian art, his art -and way of life as an ecologist avant la lettre- being a prelude to the world to come).
Chomosay would decline to participate in expositions, probably with the exception of a special one, organized in his honour in 1991 (jan 19 - febr 3) by a group of friends. This expo took place in the community of Milly-la-Forêt, near where mr Chomo had his site.
Already during his life mr Chomo's creative activity was admired by a number of other artists and by art lovers, mainly those interested in outsider art. In the seventies, eighties and nineties visitors would come along to see his creations.They were welcome on saturdays and sundays.
Mr. Chomeaux died in june 1999.
Actual situation of the environment
The site as such still exists nowadays, that is to say: the builded constructs are there. The sculptures, paintings and other smaller creations mr Chomo made, have been removed to be cared for in one or more private collections, or to be auctioned.
Some documentation
* Website (in french) completely devoted to Chomo, with a biography, a list of video's, picture galeries and a number of texts about Chomo
* An article (in french) to the memory of Chomo in the first edition of Zon'art (end 1999)
* A 5.03 min video (Athens University/Greece,Youtube 2009)
Already during his life mr Chomo's creative activity was admired by a number of other artists and by art lovers, mainly those interested in outsider art. In the seventies, eighties and nineties visitors would come along to see his creations.They were welcome on saturdays and sundays.
Mr. Chomeaux died in june 1999.
Actual situation of the environment
The site as such still exists nowadays, that is to say: the builded constructs are there. The sculptures, paintings and other smaller creations mr Chomo made, have been removed to be cared for in one or more private collections, or to be auctioned.
Some documentation
* Website (in french) completely devoted to Chomo, with a biography, a list of video's, picture galeries and a number of texts about Chomo
* An article (in french) to the memory of Chomo in the first edition of Zon'art (end 1999)
* A 5.03 min video (Athens University/Greece,Youtube 2009)
* On Flickr some 40 pictures of the site (presented by Halle Saint Pierre, Paris)
* Chomo, le débarquement spirituel - images de lumière(the spiritual landing - images of light), 30" (a fragment on Youtube; this film is a compilation of 15 hours of film, shot between 1987 and 1990, by Chomo with the assistance of Clovis Prévost).
Exposition in memory of Chomo (2009-2010)
In 2009, it was 10 years ago that mr Chomo died. In his honour, from sept. 2009 untill march 2010, in the Halle Saint Pierre, Paris, there has been an exposition.
The expo has been introduced by one of its curators, Laurent Danchin, who explains that in his opinion Chomo does not belong to the realm of those who created outsider art and environments, but should be appreciated as an artist who has a place in the history of great french art. French cultural authorities should devote a museum to him.
In my collection of texts on outsider environments you can find the english translation of Laurent Danchin's introduction to the exposition.
French TV had a news item on the exposition (with pictures of the Église des pauvres as it is nowadays).
Auction june 2010
Some 100 works by Chomo have been auctioned on June 7, 2010, by Rouillac auctioners in Cheverny, France.
A video has been made to promote the auction (french spoken, nice pictures of his oeuvre)
first published dec 2008, revised oct 2009, may 2010, dec 2010, may 2011, may 2012
Chomo
le Village d´Art Préludien
77116 Achères la Foret FR
site as such does still exists, but is not open to the public
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