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Nicolas Dhervillers

Nicolas Dhervillers works with photography and drawing. Since 2016, Dhervillers has been fusing photography with dry pastel, which he molds by hand. His Remake series features hyper-zoomed pastels derived from fragments of distant horizons, based on photographs. This work attempts to recreate—or “remake”—these scenes. As a nod to his photographic background, horizontal bands act as visual markers of the creative process.

Dhervillers’ Crossfade series, also showcased at the Private Choice photo edition in November 2024, pushes beyond medium ambiguity. He juxtaposes scanned and printed archival photographs with his dry pastel creations. This innovative approach merges modern and contemporary photographic processes with pictorial techniques. The overlapping and flowing planes in his canvases evoke cinematic imagery, the title “Crossfade” itself borrows from film terminology. Inspired by painting history, Dhervillers draws from Luminism and the Hudson River School. These 19th-century American art movements, influenced by photography’s emergence in the early industrial era, revolutionized perceptions of nature and landscape. Fascinated by the documentary aspect of paintings depicting the American West’s natural areas, Dhervillers scours American museum digital archives for images that blend historical, aesthetic, and narrative qualities. Focusing on maritime scenes, he crafts dreamlike works with ethereal, almost spectral atmospheres. These fleeting impressions, like fading memories, drift into the realm of dreams.

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Biography

Nicolas Dhervillers is a French artist born in 1981. He lives and works in Paris.

After studying photography and multimedia at the University Paul-Valéry Montpellier and the University Paris 8, Nicolas Dhervillers gained recognition following a commission from the Centre Pompidou in Metz. Drawing inspiration from cinematic, theatrical, and pictorial techniques, Dhervillers’ approach transcends traditional photographic boundaries. Represented by School Gallery, Galerie Dilecta, and Galerie Provost Hacker in Paris, he also collaborates with international art centers and museums.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUNG

  • 2005 / Maîtrise de cinéma et arts du spectacle, Université Paul Valéry Montpellier 3
  • 2003 / Maîtrise Sciences et Techniques en photographie et multimédia, Université Paris 8

SOLO EXHIBITIONS – SELECTION

  • 2022 / Centre d’art – Le Mur Moret – Under the layer, Moret-sur-Loing

  • 2022 / Galerie Dilecta, Crossfade, Paris

  • 2022 / Musée des beaux-arts de Troyes, En tête à tête avec Gustave Le Gray, Troyes

  • 2021 / Centre d’art contemporain, CAC Passages, D’une rive à l’autre, Troyes

  • 2020 / Musée de Picardie, Amiens
  • 2020 / Exposition en partenariat avec le MUCEM, Marseille
  • 2020 / Hôtels Pullman, série de 9 expositions en partenariat avec le club Barter
  • 2017 / Fondation Louis Moret, Martigny, Suisse
  • 2015 / Ballart International Foto Biennale, Australie
  • 2014 / Gemeente Museum Helmond, Pays-Bas
  • 2013 / Musée d’art sacré, Saint-Véroce
  • 2012 / Art Center Volklingen Hutte, Allemagne 2012 – Maison des Arts de Créteil
  • 2011 / Arsenal, commande du Centre Pompidou-Metz
  • 2011 / Centre d’Art Ferme Asile, Suisse
  • 2011 / Château des Bouillants, Dammarie-les-Lys
  • 2011 / Levallois Photo Festival, Levallois-Perret

GROUP EXHIBITIONS – SELECTION

  • 2022 / Private Choice n°11 Lignes de vie / Life lines, Paris, France
  • 2021 / Private Choice n°10 Odyssée / Odyssey, Paris, France
  • 2019 / Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal
  • 2019 / Serres de Pantin, Jardinons les possibles
  • 2019 / Minneapolis, Etats-Unis
  • 2019 / La Montgolfière, Paris
  • 2019 / Art-O-Rama, Marseille
  • 2017 / Biennale d’Art du Valais, Suisse
  • 2016 / EAC Les Roches, Espace d’Art Contemporain, Le Chambon sur Lignon
  • 2015 / Triennale photographie et architecture, Bruxelles
  • 2015 / Centre d’art le Radar, Bayeux
  • 2015 / Fondation Mallet-Stevens, Paris
  • 2014 / Photography Festival, Genève Château du Rivau, France
  • 2013 / Galerie du Jour agnès b., Marseille
  • 2012 / Musée d’art et d’histoire du Valais, Suisse
  • 2012 / Galerie du Jour agnès b., Hong Kong
  • 2012 / Pingyao International Festival, Pingyao, Chine

PRIZES & RESIDENCIES

  • 2018-2019 / Résidence à Marseille
  • 2011 / Résidence, Ferme Asile, Suisse
  • 2010 / Zoom, Prix du salon de la photographie
  • 2009 / Arcimboldo, Prix spécial du jury

COLLECTIONS

Daum Museum of Contemporary Art, Missouri,USA | Camper Museum, USA | Collection Pullman Artothèque du Valais, Suisse | Musée d’art et d’histoire, Valais, Suisse | Collection Raymond Weil, Suisse | Fonds Municipal d’Art Contemporain de la ville de Paris Centre Pompidou-Metz | Bibliothèque Nationale de France | Collection Fnac, France | Château du Rivau, France | Fonds de dotation agnès b. | Fondation Delsemme, Belgique | Gemeente museum, Helmond, Pays-Bas

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