Whatever

My name is Benjamin Barbier, Ben Dante. I was born in Le Havre on January 8, 1980. Since I was 27 years old , I live in Monptellier. I used to draw with "Paint" because the pixelated look seems very interesting to me. It's a sort of tribute to my generation, this generation who saw the arrival of the video game consoles in the living rooms, and also computers and Internet.

My work is expressionist, my favorite subjects are vanity, death, money, love, abandonment, suicide ...

I draw emotion and I try to comunicate the difficulty to exist, the despair and the grief. I talk about my story because it is the one I know best. My story is very hard and my work is an obvious reflection. But it's not just about a personnal story. I read a lot about Japan I am very sensitive to their culture, beliefs, traditions, etc ... The idea of Yin and Yang touches me particularly, and is seen into the importance of black and white in my work.
It talks about the struggle between good and evil that s' operates in each personne.

My work is very dark but not only, I was interested Sarah Kane's works, specialy her text whith explain that even if her work is very dark, it is still possible to see the hope inside it.
I think in the darkness it is possible with great effort, to give birth to the light and hope. That's what i'm trying to say when color appear in my drawing.

The artists i love and who i'd like to pay a tribute in my drawings are very numerous. Many are free representation (bad painting in the United States) as Basquiat, Combas, Di Rosa, Haring, etc ... I think i work in the direction.
The other artists that I appreciate are, among others, Bacon, Dali, Picasso, Miro, Mondrian, Pasqua, and many others