Text Box: One of France’s most highly respected and renowned painters, Bernard Vidal was born in Périgueux, in South West France in 1944. According to his web biographer, Kitten Detov, « At a young age, he discovered the pleasure of painting, and this passion has never left him. In 1961, he attended the Ateliers d'Art in Paris to prepare for his entry to the École des Beaux Arts. In 1967, he began what would prove to be a brilliant career in communications without ever abandoning painting. In 1992, he organized his first major international exhibition at the Gallery Art&Art, Boulevard Saint Germain in Paris. Since then, Bernard Vidal has travelled around the world presenting his work in the most famous galleries and in international institutions and museums. His works, recognized by professionals, collectors and art lovers, as well as the greatest contemporary art critics, are, to date, part of the most beautiful private and public collections Text Box: on five continents. In January 2009, Bernard Vidal was awarded the title of 'Officier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres' by the French Minister of Culture . »  Wherever he exhibits, Bernard Vidal is a magnet.  He is one of those forces of nature who acts as a conduit through whom the ecstasy of colour, movement and pure joy are expressed. Liberal use of oils gives deep texture on stretched linen where  country sides and sea shores literally dance in movements that speak of breezes off his beloved Brittany coast where M. Vidal spends a good amount of time.  The rest of his time is spent in Paris, for the most part, sketching, preparing his works and creating a modern Fauve-style that has made him famous and popular, as well as giving him a more than deserved high quotation listing on the volatile art markets. His generosity in presenting a work in this exhibition speaks highly of his solidarity with the Japanese people. Œuvre         BERNARD VIDAL