As the recipient of a scholarship awarded by the Belgian government, Mortier traveled throughout France from September to November 1953. Staying in Sète with the painter François Desnoyer, he participated in local life, met Georges Brassens, explored the neighboring villages, and captured their light on paper in numerous watercolors. He was captivated by the Hérault region and impressed by the colors, the light, and the scents, which he captured by retaining their energy. They would find expression later on….
On September 27, he attended a bullfight at the Nîmes bullring and photographed the event… fig. 1. This bullfight inspired Mortier to create several oil-on-canvas paintings and Indian ink drawings between 1953 and 1961 fig. 2fig. 3fig. 4fig. 5fig. 6fig. 7fig. 8fig. 9fig. 10fig. 11fig. 12fig. 13fig. 14.
The oil on canvas Combat fig. 15 reimagines the picador’s intervention, while the 1954 oil on canvas titled L’Adieu fig. 16 depicts the dying bull’s final farewell.
He went on to visit several more regions of France before ending his trip in November in Paris, where he met the famous art dealer Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler, director of the Leiris Gallery.
