The French artist Sébastien Preschoux is known for his geometric drawings. His oscillating lines and forms appear as though generated by computer. The decisive feature of his art, however, is handwork: Preschoux insists on making every work himself, without machines.
Handwork as a Stance
Preschoux is self-taught and lives and works in Paris. He is inspired by optical art and by the values of the Bauhaus, which emphasises the fundamental importance of manual work. Watching him at work reveals a tension between the calm with which he brings his lines onto the surface without haste and the precision of each individual gesture. Ruler and compass set the rhythm.
Concentration as Method
“One wrong line, and everything begins again.” This is how Preschoux describes his way of working. It demands great calm, concentration and focus. From this attitude come compositions that seem to float lightly in space. Anyone who watches him work inevitably thinks of the Japanese Zen garden, the karesansui. Here too, the effect arises from reduction, rhythm and patience. This association is an interpretation that we leave to the viewer.
Wood, Ink and Patience
For his paintings, Preschoux prepares the wooden support himself. He sands it several times and applies several layers of Chinese ink before drawing the outlines in acrylic. The result is a deep, absolute black against which the pattern and colours appear all the more luminous. The transition from one colour to the next is achieved by gradually adding a small proportion of the following colour. Only on close inspection does the trace of the human hand become visible. Preschoux calls this “the reward of the curious.”
Threads in Space
Alongside drawings and paintings, Preschoux creates installations of stretched threads. For Slinky, he created a mural in 2019 for Quai 36 in the Jardins de l’Arche in La Défense, in dialogue with a three-dimensional thread installation. In 2022 he took part in the group exhibition Adventices at La Manufacture in Aix-en-Provence. With the mantra “man against machine,” he criticises the dominance of technology in contemporary culture and highlights the value of the human body as a tool.
Exhibitions with Pretty Portal
In 2020 Sébastien Preschoux was part of the group exhibition Curves and Corners alongside Marc C. Woehr.
