Julien Penchenat has light at the tip of his brush. The painter, who divides his time between Paris and Montcuq, transforms the landscapes of the Lot region into sublime works of art on canvas. With nearly 130 oil paintings in his collection, he is planning to exhibit his works in Montcuq, sharing his unique vision of the countryside that has shaped his artistic journey.
Between Paris and Montcuq in the Lot region, Julien Penchenat paints light the way others write poetry. His bucolic canvases reveal the beauty of local landscapes through the gentleness of a deeply human perspective. When he recalls his childhood, Penchenat smiles tenderly as he thinks of the sweet memories shared with his grandparents, who undoubtedly sparked his appreciation for beauty and opened his eyes to the world around him.
His childhood was woven between city and countryside - between the grayish, dirty Paris of the 1980s, the tranquil bocage of Normandy, and the wild landscapes of the Lot. He was deeply influenced early on by this contrast between urban density and vast spaces bathed in light. During those years, it took more than ten hours by car to reach Montcuq, a true journey that gave him the sensation of traveling to the ends of the earth.
Once he arrived at his destination, everything changed. Gone were the noise, the buildings, and the grayness, replaced by brilliant light, total freedom, and the impression of being enveloped by beauty. He fondly remembers his grandfather, who would craft wooden toys for his grandchildren with his own hands, embodying the authentic connection to craftsmanship and creativity that would later influence the artist's work.
Born in 1974 near Brussels, Julien grew up in Île-de-France, in Val-d'Oise, before dividing his life between Paris and Montcuq, the village to which he remains deeply attached. It was in his grandfather's family home that he created his artistic sanctuary, transforming it into his creative cocoon. After completing his Baccalauréat B at Lycée Racine in Paris's 8th arrondissement, he continued his studies at the École du Louvre, followed by four years at the École Supérieure des Arts et Techniques.
From those educational years, he retains memories of a vibrant learning experience where students were encouraged to go out into the streets, observe, and immerse themselves in reality to better understand and feel it. This hands-on approach to artistic education would prove fundamental to his development as a plein air painter, teaching him to capture the essence of his subjects through direct observation and emotional connection.
The magic of his canvases lies entirely in their luminosity. Julien Penchenat paints with his heart and emotions, making light his primary subject - the soft, emerging light of morning, the frank and golden light of midday, and the more slanting and melancholic light of evening. His bucolic landscapes, imbued with serenity, recall the Impressionism of Monet, Sisley, and Pissarro, masters he has admired since discovering their works during family stays in Perche or visits to the Musée d'Orsay.
In his paintings, paths, rivers, meadows, and grazing animals become suspended moments, bathed in an almost poetic clarity. Each composition transforms familiar rural scenes into windows of tranquility, inviting viewers to pause and appreciate the subtle beauty of everyday countryside life that often goes unnoticed in our hurried modern world.
At twenty, he painted his first canvases after years of observation, drawing, and dreaming. Early on, he initiated himself into plein air painting, departing with his easel to capture fleeting moments. His father, Christian Penchenat, a professional photographer and Meilleur Ouvrier de France in photography, was undoubtedly the person who most nourished his artist's eye. Behind the camera lens, his father taught him to see, compose, and capture scenes like paintings.
Together, they would sometimes walk the streets and fields, searching for light, details, and forms. "He transmitted more than just technique to me - he gave me a way of looking at the world," Julien recalls. This paternal influence shaped not only his technical approach but also his philosophical understanding of how to perceive and interpret the visual world around him.
As an accomplished artist registered with the Maison des Artistes, he worked for a time as an illustrator for Casterman publishing house, creating technical drawings of the Palace of Versailles. However, he quickly chose to follow his true path - that of painting, free, alive, and inspired by countryside landscapes. His canvases, bathed in sunlight, breathe the serenity and simplicity of bucolic moments, capturing the essence of rural tranquility.
Travel represents another passion for Penchenat. His numerous journeys have led him around the world, through Europe and Africa. Even when far from home, he dedicates his free time to painting, never stopping his artistic practice while visiting museums, exhibitions, and observing architecture or interior design. For him, there is something initiatory about travel - each destination becomes an inspiration that nourishes his imagination and imprints him with new sensations.
Julien Penchenat embodies contrasts, much like his landscapes. Solitary and contemplative yet deeply connected to others, he appreciates the sincerity and simplicity of relationships he finds in Montcuq. Here, he reconnects with childhood friends, fellow artists, and authentic people. He loves the quiet village life, spontaneous exchanges, and the warmth of human encounters, while also embracing Parisian life with its tumult and cultural richness.
He has presented his works in Asnières, Paris on Île Saint-Louis, Albas, and of course in Montcuq, at the Café de France where he first dared to show his work to the public in 2020. His postcards, sold locally, extend this connection between his art and his village, making his vision of the region accessible to both residents and visitors who wish to take home a piece of the Lot's beauty.
What he loves above all is painting outdoors, following the sun's course, leaving early in the morning and returning late in the evening, inhabited by the changing light. Each painting becomes a witness to a moment of grace, a fleeting emotion he seeks to immortalize. For him, landscape reflects an interior moment, a beauty that touches him deep in his heart, transforming personal experience into universal artistic expression.
His clients come mainly from abroad - Austria, Germany, the United States, and the United Kingdom. They recognize in his canvases the same need for escape, the same nostalgia for places where life is good. This international appreciation speaks to the universal appeal of his work, which transcends cultural boundaries through its honest portrayal of natural beauty and peaceful rural life.
Behind his apparent calm, Julien admits to being deeply anxious, sometimes fearing he might lose his inspiration. But nature always ends up offering him what he seeks - light, a path, a river. For him, painting means dialoguing with the world, translating into colors what words cannot express. This ongoing conversation with his environment drives his creative process and keeps his artistic vision fresh and authentic.
Today, he is preparing an exhibition in Montcuq, a project close to his heart. He wishes to share with the village inhabitants these landscapes they know so well, but which he reveals in a new light. Through his canvases, Julien Penchenat invites us to look differently at what surrounds us, to rediscover in the light of a morning or in the silence of a path, that part of beauty that makes the world gentler and more meaningful.
