Michel Macréau was born in Paris on July 21, 1935. His childhood was very unstable: his father and mother were always absent, and he ended up in care. A long drift began, and Macréau endured the ups and downs of a tumultuous childhood, leaving psychological scars in adulthood. A tortured artist, he fell into depression. Frightened by not understanding his success, haunted by periods of creative desert, his artistic universe mirrors his psychological torments. His malaise, anguish and obsessions are depicted. After studying in the art department at the Lycée de Sèvres, Macréau began his artistic career. By the 1960s, he was enjoying rapid success. His torments caught up with him in the 1970s. In 1980, after several hospital stays, he finally regained his self-confidence and devoted himself body and soul to his pictorial approach. Obsessed with the human body, which he tortures, dismembers and sometimes slaughters, Macréau creates a metaphorical universe in which organs are exaggeratedly staged. Rudimentary yet effective, the symbols form the story's common thread.
The eyes, the crosses, the tribal icons - all these elements refer to his personal torments. Relationships, childhood and religion are themes in their own right, and thus occupy an important place at the heart of his work