Daniel Dezeuze's Elusive Practice: Survey Across Three French Venues

A survey of Daniel Dezeuze's work across three French galleries—Galerie Fernand Léger in Ivry-sur-Seine, Galerie Art attitude/Hervé Bize in Nancy, and Lithos – Art Contemporain in Saint-Restitut—from January to June 2003. Tristan Trémeau's review in art press n°289 (April 2003) examines Dezeuze's resistance to stylistic recognition, moving between painting, sculpture, and drawing. The exhibition includes recent Nefs (2000-2001) shown at Musée d'art moderne Lille-Métropole, referencing 1970s gauze grids, alongside earlier series like Panneaux extensibles and Cubes (1995-1997) that revisit Extensibles from 1968-1969. Works such as Objets de cueillette (1992-1995) and Armes (1980s) shift from tactile to optical engagement. Drawings like Salon noir and Grotesques (1997-2002) feature aquatic motifs and grotesque figures, evoking 16th-century Italian grotesques and Abstract Expressionist reminiscences of Arshile Gorky and Roberto Matta. Dezeuze uses watercolor pencil to create a watery, humid surface that unsettles perception, contrasting with Cy Twombly's scratching of the support. The review notes an economy of means reminiscent of Philippe Favier's drawings and engravings. Claude Minière is quoted, stating that Dezeuze's graphic works 'inquiètent l'ensemble de l'œuvre' (disturb the entirety of the work), keeping reception open and critical.