Ballet samouraïs (2024) Drawing by Patrick Deby

Patrick Deby is a multifaceted contemporary French artist, embodying the roles of photographer, painter, and poet, all as a self-taught polymath. Born in Lorient in 1959, his artistic journey began amidst the world of industrial milling, where he merged his craft with poetry while playing the role of Vulcan in metallurgy.

In 1981, Deby found his artistic crutch when he encountered the Plastic Arts School of Aubervilliers in Paris. Here, he collaborated with renowned visual artists and photographers such as Jean Rougé, Pierre Terrasson, Mélik Ouzani, Marc Pataut, and Alfredo Garzon. It was during this time that he transitioned into a professional photographer, exhibiting his work in prestigious venues like the Pompidou Center and the Grand Palais in Paris. Signing with Gamma Rapho, Deby delved into the techniques of Hungarian and Japanese photography schools, drawing inspiration from masters like Kertesz, Brassai, Munkacsi, and Yamamoto Ueda. His work embraced a poetic-graphic aesthetic, exploring the interplay of black and white to create evocative imagery.

On the painting side, Deby drew influence from American luminaries such as Pollock, De Kooning, and Twombly. Immersing himself in a world of vibrant colors and unfinished beauty, his brushstrokes scraped vibrations into paste, initiating signs with or without meaning. His art defied convention, embracing a raw, primal energy that flowed freely, breaking down the barriers of traditional artistic expression.

Through his lens and his brush, he forges a cosmogony of slag, a blowtorch alphabet that speaks to the depths of human experience. Drawing from the wellspring of great artistic pioneers, he constructs a visual language that is both provocative and profound, inviting viewers to explore the hidden traces of the missing link and embark on a journey of discovery through the realms of art and imagination.

• Nationality: FRANCE
• Date of birth : 1959
• Artistic domains:
• Groups: Contemporary French Artists