Downtown Traffic

BIOGRAPHY

Alexandre Zerbé was born in Montréal in 1974.

Zerbé paints and draws everyday. Inspired by photographs he takes of his own city or from the ones he travels to, Zerbé chooses surprising viewpoints rather than the obviously traditional scenes. He is interested in the geometry of the urban landscape, the vertical and horizontal intersections of lines that make up a modern city.

Whether the subject is a person, a room’s interior or a cityscape, every part of the composition demands your attention at once. Your gaze moves across the image, settling nowhere. In a view through a window, the chimney tops, telephone wires and balconies all seem equally meaningful, and the experience of registering all of the information at once is akin to physically being in the scene.

Zerbé’s technique is stylized: he usually sketches compositions before beginning to paint, mindful not to “over-finish” a piece as he wants the liveliness of the sketch to remain visible. His purposely discernable brushstrokes, boldly unpredictable color choices like bright red skies, the black contour lines adopted from the essence of drawing, and the calligraphy of his signature are all markers of his singular style.

STUDIES

1997	Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts, Concordia University, Montréal, QC
1994	Minor in Art History, University of Montréal, Montréal, QC

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

2011	The Village Gallery, Mississauga, ON (solo exhibition) CNAG Gallery Cynthia Nouhra, Beirut, Lebanon (group exhibition)
2010	Urban Perspectives, Galerie SOTA, Toronto (group exhibition)
2009	ANIMAS, Galerie du Viaduc, Montréal (group exhibition)
2008	A Vibrant View, Keystone Gallery, Calgary, Canada Espace La Voûte, Montréal
2007	Consulat Général de France à Montréal, QC (solo exhibition)
2006	Petits formats, Galerie Diane Lefrançois, Quebec, Canada Nocturnes, Romolo, Montréal, Canada
2005	The Green Room, Montréal, Canada (duo exhibition) Natures mortes et autres natures, Pavillon des arts, Ste-Adèle, QC (solo exhibition) Collectif imprévu, Sablo, Montréal (group show)
2004	Éthersections, solo show, O Patro Vys, Montréal Trois fois Trois, Célina, Paris, FR (group exhibition)
2003	Le Petit Alep, Montréal, Canada (solo exhibition)
2002	Joints Home Accent and Custom Framing, Calgary, Canada (group exhibition) Espace Parcours, Montréal, Canada (solo exhibition)
2000	Conception and realization of many murals for a video-clip of the group MUZION, SOMA productions Group exhibition, Galerie Entre-Cadre, Montréal, Canada
1997-99	Works in 2-D animation for Astral Tech and later for TouTenKartoon, Montréal, Canada
1998	Solo exhibition, Le Sarah Bernhardt Restaurant, Montréal, Canada Commission of canvases for a TV commercial of Molson Dry, La fabrique d’images Productions, Montréal, Canada
1997	Group exhibition, Galerie communautaire ISART, Montréal, Canada Member of a jury for a Visual Arts competition, Maison des Jeunes.
1996	Live painting, within the context of the New Cinema Festival, Montréal, Canada Assistant-decorator on a full-length film, Oneira productions, Montréal/Los Angeles Realization of a mural for theatre decor, Centre Strathearn, Montréal, Canada
1995	Cover page illustration of the book La Couleur du Mandat by Adrian Popovici, Éditions Thémis
1994	Solo exhibition, Café Nostalgie, Montréal, Canada


His works are part of many private collections throughout Canada, the United States and France.

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