In the Totem Sauvage studio: from cut panel to signed piece

Each of Camille's totems begins with an Isorel panel cut to the animal's silhouette, covered in layers of palette knife acrylic, then signed on the reverse, numbered 1/1 and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. The steps below follow the real order, with a studio photo of Le Conquérant.

1. Observation

It all starts with immersion: photographs, movement studies, long stretches spent observing the animal, in freedom or in documentation. Camille is self-taught: she tried every technique and sought to reproduce photographs exactly before finding a style and a technique that suit her. What she captures today is a movement, not a likeness.

2. The cut panel

The support is Isorel, a rigid fibreboard panel, cut to the animal's exact silhouette. The photo shows it well: the gorilla is not painted on a rectangle, the panel already is the gorilla. It first receives a special ground, chosen so the knife can glide and grip at the same time.

3. The palette and the studio floor

In the photo, the panel lies flat on a plastic sheet. Around it are tubes of turquoise, brown, yellow and violet acrylic, pots, and a painting knife lying on the sheet, to the left of the panel. The palette is composed before starting, always generous, always warm.

4. The layers

The knife replaces the brush. The impastos layer up, the colours mix directly on the panel, and the material thickens layer after layer. These layers explain the final relief: on Le Conquérant, the panel forms a wall relief several centimetres thick. They also explain the lead time of a commission, which depends on the thickness of the paint and on drying. (The gesture itself is described in our article on palette knife painting.)

5. The signature

When the piece is finished, it is signed Camille on the reverse, numbered 1/1, and accompanied by a signed certificate of authenticity. No reproduction is made of it.

What it looks like on a wall

Le Conquérant measures 118 x 110 cm and costs 545 euros. You can pay in one go or, from 150 euros, with a 30% deposit that holds the piece for three months. The Les Colosses collection gathers the other large gorillas, Le Sage and L'Indomptable.

The same process for your animal

For a commissioned portrait, Camille follows the same steps: you send two or three sharp photos, she frames the work and you approve an intention before the first stroke of the knife, then you receive a progress photo halfway through. Allow four to six weeks, as a guide. Have your animal painted.