In November 2001 ArthurX and his business associate Elizabeth, alias Kelly, visited Paris after an invitation of Marc Hagem of the Vivendi Galery at Place des Voges. And it really is a beautifull place, in those times project developers had defintifly more style.

Marc had invited them for dinner, but after viewing the artworks of ArthurX, he explained that he had a very quiet group of clients, who might be mighty shocked by this kind of wild art. And when he thought better about this case, he came to the conclusion, that it might me to wild for the whole of Paris. Actually it was so wild that the only art-crowd to stand this kind of works would be the New York scene.

So on their way back to the hotel ArthurX and Kelly were a little depressed. Just a few doors before their hotel another galery owner waved his arm in order to make them join the crowd. Inside was a vernisage and two musicians played a jazz combo. At the back of the galery an old man stood, he looked like an old Indian staring over the everlasting green plains. White long hairs hanging till his shoulders, a suede sand-colored blazer and an ageless muze near by.

He was the artist.
From the age of Picasso.
Still alive, a reliving of the past.

He adressed himself to ArthurX:
"Tu vends des peintres?"
"Pas du tout."
"Moi aussi."

It might sound like a sad yoke, being 88 and never having sold anything, so having no real chance of ever reaching anything. But at that age to still have the ferocity to want to fight whole the world, to have the spirit, movements and flashing eyes, that's what counts.

Later on he told he had had a litho atelier now operated by his daughter, Babette Pons. And in his time the great masters had made lithos in the beginning of their carreer. All the big names had been with him Picasso, Kandinsky, Chagall, Appel, Zadkine and Hundertwasser. So he invited ArthurX to go to his daughters atelier next time in Paris.
This artist was Jean Pons having an exhibition in the galery "Ars in fine" directed by Pierre du Champs.

In Januari 2002 ArthurX and Kelly went to London on different quest and met there Mark Jason of the same galery. Elizabeth told Mark Jason of theri meeting with the old giant in Paris. Mark told he had before worked for Christies and in that time he had traded the paintings of the old artist especially those of the Jazz period. So what are the odds, one month you go to Paris and the next, you meet someone having traded in him.

Another month later we were back in Paris to make the litho. And it was really exciting to have a vacation in Paris and make something at the same time. In the atelier all kind of people were walking around and to stay concentrated at making your drawing at the stone was quite a challence.
The atelier looked like the Middle Ages somewhere in a backyard at Rue de Lions.