Matthieu Monnier

Matthieu, 32, I've got a Baccalauréat in Mechanical Engineering and a BTS in Industrial Product Design, then I went back to school to take a CAP in Production Line Driving and a Bac Pro in Production Line Driving. So I worked in a factory for several years.   

I've been a pastellist since April 2021, the covid period, when I decided to stop everything and set up my own business. I'm totally self-taught when it comes to drawing, I've never taken lessons, gone to school or watched videos to learn how to draw. I've been drawing since I was very young, out of passion, and I drew on many different themes before really finding what makes me tick and gives me the most pleasure: animals. I discovered the dry pastel technique in 2020 and decided to devote myself fully to developing it.    

I've loved animals ever since I was a child, and they're my second passion, so it was an obvious choice to combine them. A look, an expression, a way of being, that's really what inspires me. My aim is really to convey their emotions through my drawings. My greatest dream would be to travel the world, photographing them myself, in their natural environment, and then re-drawing them. 

I spend dozens of hours up to more than 100 hours on my drawings, to be able to represent them in the best possible way. Above all, I'm passionate about drawing - it's the most important thing for me. I set myself new challenges with each drawing, which allows me to improve again and again. That's also what I love about this passion, there are no limits and I can express myself freely.