For more than 60 years, Flashe has been the ally of painters and the symbol of an artistic revolution, among them Vasarely, Nikki de Saint-Phalle and continues to be an asset in the service of artistic freedom for contemporary painters such as JonOne, Didier Vallé, Kelly Anna, Caroline Faindt, Stéphanie de Malherbe and many others.
DIDIER VALLÉ
The virus of hyperrealism was inoculated into him at school when he had to draw a sketch of a chestnut. He trained at the Applied Arts and became a graphic designer in advertising. His fascination for materials and their bubbling was not satisfied. He began to paint in the manner of an entomologist, endeavouring to list each of the thousand and one facets of a reality that he reveals in close-up. One senses an almost physical need to grasp the material and to stage it? A total commitment that permeates all his paintings.
It was in the army that he first discovered the Flashe. He joined a small team whose mission was to paint trompe l'oeil on the walls of the barracks at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. Since then he has never stopped using the Flashe. He uses it exclusively.
CAROLINE FAINDT
A prolific artist, Caroline works on sometimes unexpected supports (globes, boxing gloves, giant hands) and uses her work in many areas (stoles, swimwear, jewellery, etc.). This lover of colours finds in the Flashe collection an incomparable strength and intensity: "The Flashe colours are unique for me for several reasons: the intensity of the colours, the quality of the pigment, their vinyl texture which is very pleasant and easy to work with. It is a mixture of strength and softness. Strength in the colour, and softness and lightness in the application.
"I feel that this paint is like me, that it wants to leave its mark, but remain free, to have depth, but blow a wind of lightness".
Recently, the artist Caroline Faindt introduced Prince Albert of Monaco to Flashe paint! Simply royal
JONONE
John Andrew Perello, also known as JonOne, likes to use the Flashe. The New York artist, who is Parisian by adoption, describes himself as a graffiti painter and an abstract expressionist.
"I have been using Flashe for over 20 years. You can easily change its consistency by mixing it with water. It is very resistant, the quality of its pigments and its great covering power make it possible to paint very large surfaces, even outdoors."
KELLY ANNA
Kelly Anna is a British artist and designer who creates bold and colourful illustrations using a wide range of different media. An experienced user of Flashe for many years, she loves its smooth, matte finish, perfect for painting blocks of colour. This artist is making her mark on the fashion world and has collaborated with the likes of Nike, Illustrated People and dressed the likes of Beyoncé, Cara Delevingne, Foals and London Grammar.
STÉPHANIE DE MALHERBE
Born in Boulogne-Billancourt, Stéphanie de Malherbe is a graduate of Penninghen, a graphic arts school. After working for the fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier, where, among other things, she transcribed into drawings her ideas for the costumes for Luc Besson's "The 5th Element", she went to live in Mexico for 11 years and then for 5 years in Spain.
When she returned to France a few years ago, the places of her childhood touched and inspired her. Landscapes are often a starting point to let her imagination run free.
She is inspired by what she sees and puts it on the medium of her choice. Without knowing where she is going beforehand, she simply lets the brush go according to her inspiration in a whirlwind of colours. Stéphanie de Malherbe's favourite colour: Flashe Lefranc Bourgeois Japanese orange.
ESTELLE LAGARDE
Gouache artist and creator, Estelle elaborates her gouaches for jewellery and watches with meticulous precision, transforming Linel colours into real jewels on grey paper. Creative from an early age and passionate about drawing, it was in 2009 that she found her passion, during her jewellery training at the Amblard high school in Valence: jewellery gouache. A love story begins, emotion being the starting point of each creation. It is in the Parisian workshop of Van Cleef & Arpels that she learns her trade before creating, in 2019, her own design studio.
In October 2022, she created the art canvas for the Purnell watch offered to the winner of the 2022 Golden Ball, Karim Benzema.
Her talent as a gouache painter proves to be of equal precision and power in the Flashe!
OLIVIER MASMONTEIL
Although our friend, the artist Olivier Masmonteil, usually devotes himself to Lefranc Bourgeois extra-fine oil, the Flashe nevertheless had the opportunity to give him wings. The wings of butterflies, which he decorated on the ceiling of the Palais Ledoyen in Paris and then guided to the Louis Vuitton travel trunk.
In 2022, he took to the sea on Arthur le Vaillant's sailboat, which took part in the Route du Rhum. He painted a forest of Kahikateas on his boat's hull and main sail, trees that are thousands of years old in New Zealand and sacred to the Maoris.