Epsylon Point: La Raison est sans doute la folie de tous
At a time when the Centre Pompidou has acquired two historic works by Epsylon Point, Galerie Chenus Longhi is proud to present a solo exhibition dedicated to one of the most independent and distinctive figures in French urban art. Bringing together a selection of recent paintings on canvas and paper, the exhibition highlights the remarkable consistency of an artistic practice developed over nearly five decades, whose pictorial strength, political engagement and visual power remain as compelling and relevant today as ever.
The Centre Pompidou has recently added two landmark works by Epsylon Point to its contemporary art collection: Les Marins Génois (1983), one of the earliest colour stencil works produced in France, and Dragon in Love (1985). More than a museum acquisition, this event marks an important milestone in the recognition of an artist who, for nearly fifty years, has pursued a fiercely independent and deeply singular practice, long situated outside the dominant narratives of contemporary art. This recognition comes at a moment when institutions are taking a fresh look at the pioneers of urban art. Much like RAMMELLZEE— another visionary artist who spent decades on the margins before the recent exhibitions at the Palais de Tokyo and CAPC Musée d'Art Contemporain de Bordeaux revealed the full scope of his artistic legacy— Epsylon Point is now being seen in a new light: not simply as a historic stencil artist, but as a painter whose work extends far beyond the categories to which it has long been confined. Trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Dijon, Epsylon Point discovered spray paint in the late 1970s and immediately recognized its pictorial potential. In 1983, he introduced stencil into his practice. At a time when the emerging French stencil movement was almost exclusively monochrome, he became the first artist to fully embrace colour. More importantly, however, he never regarded stencil as an end in itself. Instead, he integrated it into a dynamic painterly language in which splashes, transparencies, gestures, layers and spray-painted textures create spaces of extraordinary chromatic richness. Stencil became painting. This remains one of the defining characteristics of his work. Figures, animals, words, slogans and fragments of bodies emerge from richly textured pictorial environments where abstraction and figuration coexist in constant dialogue. Colour is never merely decorative; it structures the image, disrupts its reading and intensifies its expressive power. For Epsylon Point, this visual intensity is inseparable from political engagement. His paintings question mechanisms of power, social violence and the contradictions of contemporary society without ever imposing a single interpretation. Words unsettle images, while images resist certainty. Echoing the exhibition title, Reason Is Probably Everyone's Madness, his work reminds us that what we take for granted should always be questioned. Bringing together a selection of recent paintings on canvas and paper, this exhibition demonstrates the extraordinary continuity of an artistic journey that began nearly fifty years ago. Entirely devoted to painting, Epsylon Point has never stopped creating, experimenting and inspiring younger generations of artists. If his work is now being embraced by France's leading cultural institutions, it is because it has remained faithful to the principles that have defined it from the very beginning: absolute freedom, uncompromising artistic integrity and an unwavering belief in the power of painting.
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
The relationship between Galerie Chenus Longhi and Epsylon Point spans more than two decades. Since the early 2000s, Samantha Longhi has developed close relationships with many of the leading figures of the historic French stencil movement. Epsylon Point has always held a central place within Stencil History X, her long-term curatorial project dedicated to the history of stencil art, developed between 2003 and 2011. In 2009, she authored Epsylon Point: Le Sang des Pauvres, published by Éditions Critères in its Opus Délits series—the first monograph ever devoted to the artist. Presented only weeks after two of Epsylon Point's historic works entered the Centre Pompidou's collection, this exhibition continues more than twenty years of dialogue with the artist. It celebrates not only a moment of institutional recognition, but also a conviction long held by the gallery: that Epsylon Point is far more than a pioneer of urban art—he is one of the most significant contemporary painters to emerge from the public space.
EPSYLON POINT, Reason Is Probably Everyone's Madness
Opening reception Thursday, September 10, from 6:30 pm In the presence of the artist Exhibition September 10 – October 10, 2026
Artist-led exhibition tour Saturday, September 12, 5:00 pm
Galerie Chenus Longhi
116 boulevard Richard Lenoir 75011 Paris, France
