Jen Bekman

Christian Chaize, a self-taught French artist, lives and works in Lyon, France. In 1992, he was awarded the Prix European Panorama de Kodak for Young European Photographer in Arles, France. For the past 20 years, he has had a successful career as a commercial photographer.

Recently, however, Chaize became obsessed with a small stretch of coastline in southern Portugal while vacationing there in 2004. It gave new life to his on-going personal work, which began to take precedence over his professional ambitions. His commitment to this series has, thus far, garnered Chaize a one-person gallery exhibition in Lyon, and two museum exhibitions in Portugal (Sines and Lisbon).

Among other projects, Chaize continues to photograph in Portugal, to understand (or maybe not!) the ineffable draw of its inviting and mysterious landscape. He also delights in observing the unrevealed narratives of the beach goers who, through his lens, share in its magical spell.