Thierry Costesèque — Demain le Nord — Eric Dupont Gallery — Exhibition — Slash Paris

Past: June 7 → July 27, 2012

Thierry Costesèque is a French artist, born in Saigon, Vietnam, in 1970. He received his diploma from l’école nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris in 1994.

Since 2006, he has been painting large-format infra-realism works, representing forms, lines and signs from urban life. He creates a rough aspect and an abstract pictorial essence within his paintings, by using tools foreign to the lexicon of a painter — domestic brushes, or waxing gloves, for example. His approach to the space of the canvas is similar to that found in American paintings, such as in the works of Robert Rauscheberg. He develops a reflection on the substance of paint, on gesture and on space. When asked about his work, Thierry Costesèque said:

“I paint what separates me from the world. The space interrogates me in its disposition, forcing me to revolve, to react physically. I memorize the space that looks at me. »

Such reflection leads him to work with different objects (fragments of paper, wrapping paper, push pins) in order to create assemblages and collages. His understanding of urban space reflects the dAdA style and expressionism, all while questioning the basics of painting. It is from this perspective that he thrusts himself into the city. When Thierry Costesèque repaints objects in the city, such as polls on the freeway, we are reminded of the approach of Francis Alÿs. But, anchored in his reflection on painting, Costesèsque’s interactions with the city have a different impact from those of Alÿs : they inverse the notion of space. If throughout art history the canvas has represented space, then Thierry Costeseque has succeeded in outgrowing this limited perception. Now, the canvas is the city, allowing spectators to realize that they are an integral part of an imagination in constant evolution.