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Olivier Forgues is a Canadian painter.

“At the core of Olivier Forgues’ practice is a private celebration of queer life and faces. Eschewing classical, polished, heroic figures, these portraits are intimate; shoulders slump naturally, hands are placed without the sitter considering “where should I put them”. Their gaze averts or confronts us with a quiet defiance. The tension is subtle, but present, and refracted through the vulnerability and tenderness that Forgues is continually searching for.

In an era saturated by hyper-retouched, endlessly circulated, and algorithmically sorted digital images, these alla prima paintings insist on the irreducibility of physical presence and material application. The visible brushwork records the duration of looking, the negotiation between painter and model, the friction of oil against surface.

Forgues is tapping into the atmospheric quality of the queer experience. Iconic, yes, but in a subtle way. Privately iconic.”

-Brendan de Montigny, de Montigny Contemporary

Olivier has a bachelor of Fine Arts from Concordia University and a Master of Business Administration from McGill University.

Follow him here