Guerrier de la lumière, 2026

Michèle DEBREZ  

Born in Belgium on January 21, 1960 and of French nationality, I spent a large part of my life in the north of France, near Lille. I currently live in Grasse, in the south of France, where I began studying academic drawing and painting in 2003 with Anca Sonia, a professor and internationally renowned artist.

Starting in 2007, I exhibited my works in Grasse, in various contemporary art shows, as well as during solo exhibitions in Nice, Cannes, Valbonne, Brussels, Marseille, Courtrai, Lille, and Théoule-sur-Mer. My works are currently exhibited in a gallery in Nice.

“The past has made me who I am today.”

When asked to have Michèle Debrez explain her painting or what she wanted to represent, her answer is simple: “And you, what do you see? What do you feel when looking at the work?”

That is where the magic happens. Spectators tell their story, share their emotions, and express what the painting inspires in them. For a moment, Michèle leaves them complete freedom to appropriate her canvases. Once hung, the work no longer just tells its story: it also becomes that of the person who looks at it and absorbs it.

Michèle first paints for herself, free from any constraint, letting her deepest emotions surface. She also sculpts animals—horses, wolves, gorillas, and dogs, notably flat-coated retrievers. When she models them, she enters a communion with them: she has the feeling of caressing them, of making them live within her.

Sometimes, she also represents human characters, alone facing the world around them or in the company of an animal.