Fresque monumentale [Monumental fresco] - Jean Dewasne

The artwork

These four frescoes, among the most monumental ever created at La Défense, have the particularity of having been designed at the same time as the Grande Arche de La Défense, on the initiative of the architect J.O von Spreckelsen. They are laid out, in fragments, over a total area of one hectare, with dimensions of 75m wide by 100m high.

In a chaotic construction of forms and colours, they decorate the interior spaces, on the height of the 34 floors of the south wall, as well as the entrance hall of the north wall, evoking the mysterious links that unite thought and human beings.

Nowhere visible in its entirety, it is an integral part of the building.

The artist

Born in 1921, Jean Dewasne studied classical and musical studies at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he attended architecture workshops for two years before turning to painting. Since 1949, Jean Dewasne has been trying, in his artwork, to escape the illusion of the third dimension. It is also a continuous research on the objective knowledge of colour that animates his work. By pursuing the creation of increasingly complex systems of forms and structures, Jean Dewasne practically claims the status of a scientific researcher through his artistic practice.