Screen Printing - June/July 2018 - 27

Peter Fromme-Douglas, 1985 original print
Also a multiple-award winner, this print is remembered by Caza as
one of the most difficult. The artist spent a month at Caza's studio
working on this and three other prints in the series.

Thérèse Caza, signing her 2015 original print "Fire,"
commissioned by FESPA as a gift to VIPs.

I imagine that you won't miss the business side of art
publishing. Your work brought you into contact with
some unscrupulous and highly volatile personalities.
Unfortunately, this phenomenon of "almost" fraudulent sales,
even quasi or real scams, has been somewhat aggravated by
the internet. In addition, digital printing makes it even easier
to produce quality printing, which can be perceived as genuine by an audience often unknowledgeable of fine art.
On many websites specializing in fine-art sales, the "waltz
of the labels," is equally surprising. The price differences are
often staggering for what, according to the descriptive text,
date, size, technique, etc. is assumed to be the real thing. If
you see the same image, often with several formats, you can
be sure that it's a simple reproduction, not an original print. It
goes (or should, rather) without saying, that a Warhol serigraph, or a lithograph by Miró, Dali, or Picasso going for $20 or
even $200, is in fact a simple reproduction. I confess to being
a little skeptical regarding some online auction sellers; many
of them leave me with little doubt after researching their sites,
even recognizing some of my own works. However, let's not
paint things blacker than they are! There are many publishers
and galleries, many online, that are perfectly honest.

then there was the double tribute to Hergé and Warhol in 1983,
the year that Hergé died and four years before Andy's death. I
had the opportunity to chat with Andy several times but never
worked directly with him. Funny enough, when I met with him
at The Factory in the late '70s, Andy told me that in reference
to the work that Domberger and I were doing, "your silkscreens are too beautiful and sophisticated for me!" After this
movie, I continued to "Warholize" with Chanel, Ladurée, and
Absolut Vodka, as I tell in the book.

You never worked directly with Andy Warhol, though you
met him and became ironically linked with his work after
he died. It must have been an honor to have been asked
to explain his process for the documentary film, "My
Name is Andy Warhol."
Well, frankly, I do not consider that I was "honored" when a
TV channel asked me to do this shoot in my studio. For me, it
was an all-natural thing! Many people have known for years (I
first met Warhol in 1965) that I was a bit of a "Warhol specialist" in France. This is largely thanks to my friend, the famous
New York gallery owner Leo Castelli, who gave me the reprints
of Warhol's "Four Flowers" for Nouvelles Images in 1975. And

And what is next for Michel Caza? Will you continue to
speak, work on limited editions, perhaps more works
from Thérèse?
Of course, I will continue! In art, especially with Fabienne
Verdier, with my wonderful Thérèse too if the opportunity
arises, and with my students, for whom I happen to prepare
files and simulations. I also remain a technician and consultant for whoever may need my advice in the world. I will
continue to write articles, lecture, participate as a judge in
competitions. Why the hell should I stop? I have no desire to
become an angler somewhere in Scotland. After all, I'm only
83 years old and my future is not only my past!

MICHEL CAZA:
THE CHAMELEON OF
CONTEMPORARY ART
was published in
May and debuted at
FESPA '18 in Berlin.
To order a copy, visit
cazamichel-artedition.com.
To view additional prints
from Caza's archive, visit
screenweb.com/caza.

JUNE / JULY 2018

http://www.cazamichel-artedition.com http://www.screenweb.com/caza

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Screen Printing - June/July 2018