En attendant le jour, 2024

Xavier Jallais  

Retaining fragments of life, clinging to the living.

In the folds and recesses of the material, lies a raw reality and sincere questioning. What are these pieces of life that make me who I am? What to take if I had to leave everything?
In his self-portraits Xavier Jallais imposes a disturbing contemplation. A body that gets lost and hides under such fragile architectures made of a few blankets, cards and other boxes. Decontextualized and unrecognizable, these portraits become icons at the foot of which votive offerings become possible. A form of secular sacredness that questions our world. This loss of identity allows for introspection, each spectator questions themselves about the fragments of their lives stuck in the hollow of their arms.

Born in 1971, Xavier Jallais lives and works in Vienne. Graduated with a master's degree in Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Property at Paris1–Panthéon Sorbonne, he works as a Conservator–restorer of paintings on canvas. In this context, he comes across old works, whose state, sometimes in disrepair, will be the source of his inspiration in the creation of contemporary art.