Known for his use of unconventional materials such as dust, dead skin, Pu’er tea and coins, his works are often defined as poetic, sensitive, humane yet unsettling. This allows the audience to reflect on the human condition and its impact on the world.
Chrysalis unveils a new body of work that is representative of the progression of Sabatté’s artistic practice as an oil painter by incorporating a new material to his paintings: silk. He frequently mentions that paint is derived from petrol, which is essentially the result of the fossilization of dead organisms over millions of years.
Sabatté refers to his paintings as a reflection and celebration of the living. The title of the show alludes to the metaphorical life-cycle of a butterfly and the addition of silk to the painting represents the act of transformation and rebirth, bringing a new form and meaning.
About the artist
Lionel Sabatté (b.1975, Toulouse, France). Educated at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris, his work has been part of numerous exhibitions in France and abroad. In 2021, he had a retrospective exhibition at the MAMC+ in Saint Etienne and he is scheduled to exhibit at the Chateau of Chambord in May of 2023. In addition to Cuturi Gallery in Singapore and London, Lionel Sabatté regularly exhibits at Gallery Ceysson & Bénétière, Gallery 8+4 and Gallery C.
Lionel Sabatté received several prizes since 2011: Yishu Prize 8 in Beijing with a residency opportunity in China and the Drawing Now Prize in 2017 for the importance of his works on paper. Alongside winning La maison rouge, he was recently awarded the 2019 Del Duca Foundation Painting Prize and the 2020 Luxembourg Art Prize. His work can be found in several institutional collections: Centre National des Arts Plastiques, FRAC de la Réunion, Musée de l’Abbaye Sainte-Croix des Sables d’Olonne, Fondation Antoine de Galbert, Monastère Royal de Brou de Bourg-en-Bresse, The Jurong Lake Gardens in Singapore and CAFA Art Museum in Beijing.
