Jean-Michel FOLON

Biography

Jean-Michel Folon, born on March 1, 1934, in Uccle and died on October 20, 2005 (at the age of 71) in Monaco, was a Belgian watercolorist, painter, engraver, and sculptor. He worked with many materials and created in various forms: watercolor, painting, engraving, sculpture, tapestry, postage stamps, and theater sets.

During the academic year 1954-1955, he attended for a few months the courses in industrial aesthetics at the National School of Visual Arts of La Cambre. He was gifted in sketching but did not sit for his final exams. Encouraged by his professors and his uncle Étienne Samson, he left Brussels for Paris in 1955 and settled in a gardener's pavilion in Bougival.

He soon distinguished himself in the field of illustration with several styles (assuming a certain lineage with Saul Steinberg) characterized by wide watercolor gradients and the recurrent use of characters with deliberately schematic outlines. Their lost expressions, their weightless wandering in vast barren landscapes or, on the contrary, in oppressive and enigmatic urban spaces, perfectly in tune with the questions of Western society after May 68, are arguably the best aspect of his work.

Occasionally an actor, he played a supporting role for Michel Polac in La Chute d'un corps. Then he had a more significant role for Maurice Dugowson: he was one of the three main characters in Lily aime-moi. He reappeared in the following film, F comme Fairbanks. In 1981, he had the leading role, alongside Marlène Jobert in Yannick Bellon's film L'Amour nu.

In June 1983, he designed the first logo for Apple, "Mr. Macintosh," formerly Macintosh, the company of Steve Jobs, which was replaced at the last minute by the logo of Tom Hughes. The contract was for $1 per computer sold. Considering the 30 million units sold in 15 years, he missed the most significant financial deal of his career.

1989 marked his philatelic and public success in France: he designed the logo for the international philatelic exhibition of Paris Philexfrance 89, and the logo Les Oiseaux for the commemoration of the French Revolution, appearing on numerous stamps and commemorative objects around the world.

In 1990, Ray Bradbury contributed to the writing of the book, Folon's Folons from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He had illustrated The Martian Chronicles in 1979.

Jean-Michel Folon was also a fervent defender of human rights. In 1989, he illustrated the articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights for its 40th anniversary. He also illustrated various campaigns for Amnesty International.

He was successively married to Colette Portal and then Paola Ghiringhelli.

He died of leukemia on October 20, 2005, at the age of 71. He is buried in the cemetery of Monaco.