L’ekphrasis de Pascal Quignard – du classique au contemporain
Pascal Quignard’s ekphrasis – from classic to contemporary

Summary/Abstract: Small rhetorical ornament cultivated by the followers of the Second Sophistic, the ekphrasis was defined since the Ancient times by Hermogenes of Tarsus as a "thorough, lively descriptive speech and placing before the eyes what it shows". At first, the ekphrasis was aiming at a wide range of topics; thus there were the ekphrasis of the persons, the actions, the occasional circumstances, the places, the seasons, etc. Gradually, its area is restricted to the vivid and meticulous presentation of art pieces.The masterpieces that scattered Pascal Quignard’s novels are consistent with the time when the action takes place. Therefore, we identify two broad categories: the classic works of art related to the 17th century and the contemporary ones. The ekphrasis used by the author to present the speech changes depending on the time when the specific work of art was created. The tapestries, the landscapes by Claude Gellée, the still lives by Lubin Baugin, the paintings on button and on top of the snuffboxes, as well as the small-scale replicas, the mezzotint engravings and the azulejos representing the 17th century are part of the classical artwork concept. These require an ekphrasis which respects the ancient precept of letting go of mimesis. Paradoxically, the novels where the action takes place in contemporary times include visual references which cannot bypass the faithful copy of reality and which are, subsequently, related to the work of art itself. The photo, the poster, the socialist-realist painting of André Fougeron, they all require an adequate ekphrasis, that is to say permeable and elastic with respect to the work of art concept.Furthermore, this figure is not limited to an ornamental role. From one novel to another and often within the same novel, the ekphrasis covers several functions.

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