What a stroke of the pen!

The few words of this phrase express the essence of the drawing. A drawing that in our spontaneous imagination is classical. But drawing is also a beginning for contemporary artists. The aerial sketchbooks of Antony Gormley, Pablo Picasso, Basquiat and Warhol demonstrate this perfectly.

Contemporary drawing transcends the limits of the blank sheet of paper. It becomes a dynamic canvas where ideas, forms and emotions intertwine. Through it, artists explore new frontiers, defying conventions to create captivating, emotional works. And this, in a very spontaneous and instinctive way, sometimes on a corner of a paper tablecloth in a café or in a sketchbook. Between abstraction and storytelling, contemporary drawing reveals an astonishing versatility, ranging from simple strokes to complex works to the bold use of color. In addition to artists, designers, architects, interior designers, decorators also have their own personal pencil strokes. Often preserved as inspired sketches, they are nevertheless works in themselves that bear witness to the genesis and effervescence of a project.

This year, Drawing Now Paris is innovating again. The show asked me to help them choose three designers and an architect to make their "Coup de coeur" selection among the works presented at the show. Aline Asmar d'Amman, Noé Duchaufour Lawrance, Constance Guisset and Mathieu Lehanneur, all in love with the line, all using it instinctively, took part in the game.