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Jules de Balincourt

As Far West As We Could Go

Geschichten aus dem globalisierten Alltag

Jules de Balincourt (b. Paris, 1972; lives and works in Brooklyn, NY) paints his iridescent street scenes and garishly lit scenarios by patiently building up layer upon layer. Painting, to his mind, is an act of observation in which he comes to understand his own culture and existence—a way to transcend what is alien in his own (globalized) life. The viewer often senses an indefinable tension and menace: the pictures intimate that something sinister may have occurred. Balincourt’s—ostensibly—idyllic scenes stoke our expectations, but then leave us with a feeling of uncertainty and disquiet. The painter creates his own cosmos, a parallel universe precariously balanced between utopia and dystopia that explicitly acknowledges realities such as civil wars, oil crises, and explosions. The book presents a selection of recent works by Balincourt. With essays by Kathrin Balkenhol and Oliver Koerner von Gustorf.