INFO
Alexandre Zhu (b. 1993) is a French-Chinese artist whose work stems from the experience of growing up between Paris and Shanghai. Working primarily with charcoal on canvas, he develops labor-intensive drawings from personal archive photographs, gradually distancing each image from its photographic source through the slow accumulation of charcoal.
Shaped by his experience within the Chinese diaspora, Zhu's practice explores how memory, identity and belonging are transformed by distance, migration and the passage of time. His series move between anonymous environments, intimate fragments and personal memories, where tightly cropped compositions withhold context and narrative. His drawings slow down perception, allowing images to shift from representation toward material presence, where memory is experienced less as a fixed narrative than as a fragile and evolving condition.
Zhu approaches charcoal less as a drawing medium than as a sculptural material. Through successive layers, erasures and friction, the surface acquires a tactile presence that oscillates between image and object, inviting a slower and more uncertain mode of perception.
Shaped by his experience within the Chinese diaspora, Zhu's practice explores how memory, identity and belonging are transformed by distance, migration and the passage of time. His series move between anonymous environments, intimate fragments and personal memories, where tightly cropped compositions withhold context and narrative. His drawings slow down perception, allowing images to shift from representation toward material presence, where memory is experienced less as a fixed narrative than as a fragile and evolving condition.
Zhu approaches charcoal less as a drawing medium than as a sculptural material. Through successive layers, erasures and friction, the surface acquires a tactile presence that oscillates between image and object, inviting a slower and more uncertain mode of perception.
Laureate of the Pierre David-Weill’s Académie des Beaux-Arts Drawing Prize (2021) and Prix Dauphine Contemporary (2022), he was selected for the Artpress Biennale (2022). In 2024, he was nominated as a finalist for the K11 Art Foundation Prize. His work has been shown in various galleries, fairs and institutions, such as Victoria Miro (Venice IT), Altman Siegel (San Francisco, US), Gallery Vacancy (Art Basel, Frieze, Paris Internationale), Zhi Museum (Chengdu, CN), MO.CO (Montpellier, FR).
︎︎︎ Solo exhibitions
2027 (Forthcoming)
- Fondazione Bonollo, Thiene, IT
2024
- Paris Internationale, Gallery Vacancy, Paris, FR
︎︎︎ Selected group exhibitions
2026
- Art Basel Hong Kong, Gallery Vacancy, Hong Kong, HK
2025
- Art Antwerp, Night Café Gallery, Antwerp, BEL
- Frieze Seoul, Gallery Vacancy, Seoul, KR
- Casual Time, Altman Siegel, San Francisco, US
- Art Basel Hong Kong, Gallery Vacancy, Hong Kong, HK
- Chiaroscuro, A Century of Charcoal, Victoria Miro Gallery, Venice, IT
- Takes on the Sublime, Night Café Gallery, London, UK
2024
- The Salon by NADA & the Community, Night Cafe Gallery, Paris, FR
- SWAB, Silica Contemporary, Barcelona, ES
- Augmented Paris, Zhi Museum, Chengdu, CN
- Inventory, Galerie John Ferrère, Paris, FR
2023
- L’image en creux, Espace 100ECS, Culturfoundry, cur. E. Hatt, Paris, FR
- Suite n°1, Galerie John Ferrère, Paris, FR
- À marée basse, Galerie BAQ, Paris, FR
- There is no lonesome wave, La Coupole, Poush, Aubervilliers, FR
- One piece, Galerie Valérie Delaunay, Paris, FR
- Y, Galerie Bertrand Grimont, Paris, FR
2022
- Biennale Artpress, MOCO/Musée Fabre, Montpellier, FR
- Prix Dauphine pour l’Art Contemporain, Le Sample, Bagnolet, FR
- À voir absolument II, H Gallery, Paris, FR
2021
- Prix Pierre David Weill, Académie des Beaux-Arts, Paris, FR
- Le Soleil se lève aussi, Un-Spaced gallery, at Manifesta, Lyon, FR
2020
- L’Écho du Silence, Espace 16K, Culturfoundry, Kremlin-Bicêtre, FR
- Instable (duo-show), Galerie du Crous, Paris, FR
2019
- Emerging Lines, Galeria Neon, Academy of Arts, Wroclaw, PL
- Low Res, Espace rue de Tanger, Casablanca, MA
2018
- MAD (Multiple Art Days), La Monnaie de Paris, Paris, FR
- Graduation show, ENSAD, Paris, FR
︎︎︎ Studies
2018 École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs de Paris, FR
2016 School of Visual Art (Fine Art), New York, USA
︎︎︎ Residencies / Distinctions
2024 K11 Foundation Prize, Finalist, HK
2022 POUSH studios Residency, Aubervilliers, FR
2022 Artpress Biennale selection / MOCO, Musée Fabre, Montpellier, FR
2022 Dauphine Contemporary Art Prize 2022, Laureate, Paris, FR
2021 Prix Carré sur Seine 2021, Finalist, Paris, FR
2021 Prix Pierre David Weill, Laureate, Académie des Beaux-Arts, Paris, FR
2018 Création Émergente, Galerie du Crous, selected artist, Paris, FR
2018 Fondation Bettencourt-Schueller scholarship, Paris, FR
︎︎︎Collections
Fondazione Bonollo (Venice, Italy)
Huawei (Shanghai, China)
Manifesto (Paris, France)
X Museum (Beijing, China)
Private collections (US, Europe, Asia)
︎︎︎ Press
︎︎︎ https://www.roborantreview.com/reviews/casual-time-altman-siegel-san-francisco
︎︎︎https://www.fineartgroup.com/artist-spotlight-alexandre-zhu/
︎︎︎ https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2024/10/18/art-basel-paris-quatorze-lieux-a-visiter-autour-de-la-foire-d-art-contemporain_6354764_3246.html
︎︎︎https://www.beauxarts.com/expos/foires-off-nos-plus-belles-decouvertes-2024-dasia-now-akaa-offscreen-et-paris-internationale/
︎︎︎https://www.galleryvacancy.com/paris-internationale-2024-alexandre-zhu-press-release.html
︎︎︎ https://fadmagazine.com/2024/10/16/paris-internationale-floor-by-floor/
︎︎︎ https://www.k11artfoundation.org/en/article/k11-artist-prize-winner-announcement
︎︎︎https://aca-project.fr/aca-project-x-koi-5-french-asian-artists/
︎︎︎https://www.artpress.com/2022/05/20/zhu-alexandre/︎︎︎https://www.lequotidiendelart.com/articles/21681-dauphine-nomme-ses-finalistes.html
︎︎︎https://www.academiedesbeauxarts.fr/laureats-des-prix-de-dessin-pierre-david-weill-2021