Work by Gérard Dechamps, painting using sewing and chalk techniques

The presented work by Gérard Deschamps, dated 1981, perfectly illustrates the spirit of Nouveau Réalisme: a combined material and conceptual approach. Produced in mixed media by sewing and applying chalk, this painting measures 60 × 60 cm framed. It marks a milestone in the artist's career: just before he moved, from the mid-1980s, towards panoplies integrating fluorescent colors and bold textures, exploring themes such as surfing or beach balls. Deschamps, a player in Nouveau Réalisme, favored the assembly of industrial or everyday elements to question consumer society. Here, "sewing" signifies the assembly of textile materials, while the chalk introduces an ephemeral and tactile quality, contrasting with the permanence of the other components. His skill lies in transforming the ordinary into a meaningful work, each fragment of fabric or trace of chalk contributing to create a visual microcosm filled with contemporary cultural resonances. Through this process, Deschamps does not simply represent reality: he reinvents it, offering an artistic testimony that is at once material, conceptual and evocative.