Julien Heintz, (b.1997) is a fourth year student at the Beaux-Arts de Paris in James Rielly’s studio. With working predominantly oil painting, he seeks the ambiguity between abstraction and figuration. The preparation of the canvas has a particular significance to him. The surface is approached as a unique material which he prepares with a gesso made of marble powder, rabbit skin glue and water. This preparation, which is then sanded, gives the canvas a smooth, hard and porous aspect, almost as fine as a sheet of paper, which make it a unique and fragile object. it is this fragility that pushes him to apprehend the surface on which he paints in a singular way, to and qualities. “I am inspired by Japanese craftsmanship. This form of devotion to the manufacturing process fascinates me. In my own work what surrounds me is important: my space, the quality of the materials and the tools I use. I take a lot of time to choose my raw pigments and to grind them. I think I have a more physical than intellectual approach to painting.