ARTIST

"Why do I paint?"

"When a young child of eight years of age, I used to accompany my grandfather in the beautiful hilly countryside of the Forez region near Lyon, and while sitting near his easel I would observe him transposing on his canvases the natural decors surrounding him, the old chapels, the ancient cloisters...until one day I also brought along an easel and brushes.

One of my uncles who himself was a painter as well as an art teacher, encouraged me then to persevere, and since then painting has remained the focus of my life.

When 17 years of age, I became a student of the School of Fine Arts in Saint Etienne where I studied for five years.  Then to Paris to live and work there.  Paris offers, of course, many opportunities to meet other artists, to visit museums and other artistic locations, to have shows in various galleries; but it was a very difficult time for a young artist living from his art alone and refusing any compromise for the sake of money.  Time was of the essence and 'painting' demanded my entire devotion and concentration to the exclusion of any other endeavor.

In 1996, I left Paris in order to settle in the south of France and find luminosity and peace.  Dedication to work, twelve hours in my studio, incessantly searching for the fluctuations and plays of light through the palette of colours."

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Thierry Chambeyron was born in 1957 in Lyon in the east of France.  He studied at the Ecole de Beaux-Arts in Saint Etienne from 1974 to 1979.  Upon graduation moved to Paris where he lived and worked until 1996.

In 1997, moved to the south of France, to Fontanes near the city Nimes, where he set up his studio in the wine-making basement of a very old farm house.  His artwork reflects his dedication to create effects of light and transparencies and also, lately, effects of dynamic fluidity through the subtle use of a rich palette of colors.