Pierre Soulages is a French abstract painter born in Rodez on December 24, 1919. At the age of 18, he had already painted several works in Rodez, but decided to continue his career in Paris. At the Louvre, he immersed himself in various paintings and painters, and returned to Rodez very inspired. He returned to the French capital after the war and settled there permanently. Pierre Soulages became famous with his black canvases and his unattractive informal art. Later, the entire world began to appreciate his works: New York, London, Copenhagen decided to exhibit his work. Nowadays, his paintings appear in the greatest museums of modern art in the world. On May 30, 2014, the Soulages museum is inaugurated in his hometown, Rodez, which houses the largest collection of the artist.

Pierre Soulages paints almost exclusively black canvases, using walnut stain in particular. His style is unique, and sometimes rejected for certain exhibitions. His speciality remains the mastery of the colour black, known as “outrenoir” or “black-light” in his words. His outfits are always dark. His works are among the most expensive in the world. In November 2019, his painting, “Peinture 200 × 162 cm”, made in 1960, was sold for 9.6 million euros. Pierre Soulages has also created about a hundred stained glass windows for the abbey church of Sainte-Foy in Conques.