Profile
AleXY-D was born in Thiers, (the Massif Central region), in 1956.
He spends his time between la Nièvre (Burgundy) and Paris. AleXY-D takes photographs in industrial wastelands. In these abandoned sites he looks for details that symbolize hope within a negative space. He produces images with fragments of light and color which prove that, contrary to our usual understanding of the world, nothing is ever wholly final or definitive.
The generic title for all of his photographs is 'Réminiscences'. He works in color, tending towards the abstract and minimalist. His pictures - like open windows for our imagination - transport us to another sphere, to a world of marginalia.
Here, the unconscious can find the fleeting and jubilant touch which makes us forget the present.
Reviews:
In deserted sanctuaries; which can only be glimpsed from a railway track, in an environment of decomposition, this is where the artist finds his inspiration.
Face to face with inert matter - landscapes, atmospheres and objects disapear …
Instead, we are drawn towards the substance-matter itself: - granular, flaking and bedecked with the most improbable colours. Skillfully avoiding hackneyed clichés he determines his choice of surface, which will be captured by his macroscopic lens.
Thus, the hitherto worn out and discarded materials, once rediscovered, are given a new lease of life.
Without any recourse to either chemical, technical or digital manipulation, the artist seeks out and photographs images, exploiting different physical mediums, form and colour.
In much the same way an abstract painter would."
(Pierre Duriot, Chief Editor at Koikispass magazine, Nevers.)
"AleXY-D works rather like a solitary vagabond, in disused warehouses, in old factories, in places where humans have rejected obsolete technological materials.
But beauty has several hiding places, so it is up to us to find them … The artist is very good at hunting them out.
The peeling scrap metal, the hazy colours, the pervasive rust, have become an art form of our time. However, any glorification of industrial waste is totally rejected. A small point, perhaps, but very important – because his photos will remain timeless."
(Jacques Debaigts, Art Dealer)
"What I admire about AleXY-D's photography: -
Firstly, the visual impact – strong and striking. There are all the ingredients I would look for in a non-representational painting (I'm not comfortable with the word abstract). Then, the way he constructs his images, using and contrasting different extremes:
- the resolution, ranging from absolute precision to blurred.
- the unexpected colours, ranging from bold and vivid to almost indecernable. But perhaps most importantly, - the way the artist entices us to a surface – where it seems difficult to keep a sense of perspective. Here, we are confronted by the mystery. The subject matter loses it's sense or importance. The image is blown up so much, to the extent that one wonders what it could have been in the first place – but, does it really matter ? The title of his work, 'Réminiscences' is very apropriate – his photos trigger a multitude of reactions and reference points – be they purely esthetic, personal, cultural or otherwise.
- Beauty is in the eye of the beholder….
What's more, they not only assert themselves along with all the other pictures - either hanging, leaning or piled up around the place, but also, more than hold their own, (despite the tough competition), thanks to their unique and somewhat imposing originality."
(collectionneur anonyme)