COLOURS OF HOPE
Art Exhibition
Olivier Dassault
Olivier Dassault (June 1, 1951 – March 7, 2021) was 14 years old when his little sister was born and he started taking photographs of her —as well as of his girlfriends— and a life-long passion was born.
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Olivier Dassault thought of making photography his career. But his parents—the Dassaults—one of the most prominent French industrialist families, had other goals for him. “I was told I should be an engineer first, and then after, I could do whatever I wanted,” recalled Dassault, with the affable demeanor that suits his success as a political figure and depute, elected to the Assemblee Nationale, or French Parliament. Nevertheless, he persevered, and in 1975, sent his dossier of photographs to a notable art competition. “I was refused,” he recalled, “and although I had hoped they would just look at the photographs, I realized that a name can open or close doors.”
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Faithful to his Minolta XD7, he devoted part of his life to capturing moments on silver film. From amateur competitions to his many trips around the world, everything became a pretext for him to hone his eye, perfect his technique and develop a deeply personal artistic approach.
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​Over more than 40 years, Olivier Dassault's work has evolved from spontaneous abstractions to improvised compositions, often achieved through multiple exposures and overprints at the shoot. Gradually, he freed himself from the constraints of realism to explore color and form as true sources of creation.
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An avid traveller, Olivier Dassault creates unique and captivating visual compositions exclusively in film. By carefully observing his surroundings, he captures the essence of the elements that surround him. Wherever he finds himself, he photographs, transforming every moment into a singular work of art.
His photographs are exhibited worldwide, from Paris to New York, Madrid to Marrakech, and are included in the catalogs of many museums and institutions, from the Bibliothèque Nationale de France to the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, from the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas, to the Palm Springs Art Museum in California. In 2023, his work will join the collections of the Centre Pompidou in Paris.
Olivier Dassault's approach remains a quest for obsessive reflection, towards the ultimate, unprecedented cliché. His “iconic confessions” attest to his mischievous spirit, his sensitivity and the virtuosity of his gestures. Every work bears witness to a fragment of life, where light harmonizes with matter and invites us to appreciate the beauty of the world and preserve it.
Olivier Dassault, known for his multifaceted career, left behind a unique body of work as a photographer. Children of Mekong Exhibition “Colours of Hope”, in Hong Kong pays tribute to his vision by showcasing his striking photography, two colourful photographs called Jardin des Arts.
