(1920-1999)
A painter of the exaltation of colour and broad expanses, Olivier Debré is a key artist of Post-War Lyrical Abstraction. The personification of French Color Field, this “European Rothko” defined his painting as “fervent abstraction” because it arouses emotion.
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OLIVIER DEBRÉ
Published by the Galerie Diane de Polignac
Exhibition Catalog
French & English – 84 pages – may / june 2017
OLIVIER DEBRÉ
Published by the Galerie Diane de Polignac
Exhibition Catalog
French & English – 80 pages – sept. 2014
LYRICAL ABSTRACTION
PARIS 1945-1995
Published by the Galerie Diane de Polignac and the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts
Exhibition Catalog
English – 21 pages – nov. 2014
“Olivier Debré, Untitled – 1948”, an analysis by Astrid de Monteverde and Mathilde Gubanski
In 1920 Olivier Debré was born in Paris to a family of doctors and politicians. His father was the famous paediatrician Robert Debré while Michel Debré, the future prime minister under de Gaulle, was his brother. It is from his mother’s side that he inherited his artistic sensitivity. His maternal grandfather Édouard Debat-Ponsan, was an academic painter of the previous century and his maternal uncle, Jacques Debat-Ponsan, a famous architect and winner of the Rome Prize in 1912.
At a very young age, Olivier Debré began to draw, paint, and sculpt before entering the architecture section of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris, where he joined the studio of his uncle Jacques Debat-Ponsan. At the same time he also frequented Le Corbusier’s studio. For Olivier Debré, architecture was an extension of art, the logical continuation of his artistic beginnings. He said: “as a child, I mixed architecture, painting, and sculpture. For me it corresponded to the same thing, it was a way of being in opposition to medicine, law, mathematics. The Fine Arts formed a whole. Architecture as much as painting.” Circumstances of life led Debré to abandon architecture to concentrate on painting at the beginning of the 1940s. The painter Debré confided: “during the difficult period of the War, I was there, in the Touraine, where I had always gone when I was a child, and I went back into the fields and I painted, simply, like that.” he added “(…) In painting, I needed direct expression and physical communication with nature; perhaps precisely during that difficult time, the need to escape from that society and its terrible background.” Painting became his means of expression, his own language, like the “transcription of [his] emotion” (Debré).
In 1941, Olivier Debré presented his paintings, landscapes of the Touraine and views of the banks of the Seine, at the Galerie Aubry in Paris. During winter 1942, Olivier Debré pushed his reflection towards the scope of painting, its impact, and formed a method of artistic expression that would be like a language, one that was both “pure” and equipped for communication. “Either the language is purely conventional, we know in advance what a given sign means, and it is basically writing or, if you want the sign to be comprehensible, it has to pass by emotion, by material sensation and, again, it is no longer a pure language. In that moment, I immediately introduced myself into the signs” explained Olivier Debré.
At that time, he met Picasso and visited his studio on the rue des Grands-Augustins in Paris many times. Picasso’s work inspired him and incited him to express his emotion without using representation, but beyond the decomposition of the object characteristic of Cubism. Debré used the sign, which was for him “the incarnation of thought”.
In 1945, he married Denise Coulon with whom he had two children: Patrice and Sylvie.
Olivier Debré’s work Signe de Ferveur Noire (Sign of Black Fervour) (1944-1945, private collection), painted directly with tube of paint, marked the passage to non-figurative art.
From 1948, Debré exhibited at the various art Salons in Paris: the Salon d’Automne, the Salon des Surindépendants, and then from the early 1950s at the Salon de Mai where he exhibited throughout his career, at the Salon d’Octobre, the salon Comparaisons and the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles where he showed regularly for ten years from 1957 to 1967.
The Galerie Bing in Paris held Debré’s first solo exhibition in 1949: the paintings he exhibited, abstract and very expressive, were appreciated. Olivier Debré met other key painters of Lyrical Abstraction at the same time: Gérard Schneider, Jean-Michel Atlan, Pierre Soulages and Hans Hartung.
At the start of the 1950s, Olivier Debré’s work became more substantial, marked by a palette of muted colours. He worked the paint with a knife in flat areas of colour to construct his paintings: they are abstract still lifes and landscapes, solidly constructed, concentrated on the horizontal plane, or large vertical compositions constructed with broad impasto from which the full length silhouette of a man stands out: these are the Sign-Figures, characteristic of the 1950s, in restrained colours, almost monochrome.
At the end of the 1950s, two solo exhibitions of Olivier Debré’s art were mounted in the USA, at the Knoedler Galleries of New York in 1959, and the same year a retrospective was held at the Philips Collection in Washington. This was a success. He met Franz Kline, Mark Rothko and Jules Olitski there. His works continued to travel abroad: to Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Finland, Norway, and Germany. In 1966 his first retrospective at a French museum, Olivier Debré. Peintures 1943-1966, was shown at the Musée des Beaux-Arts of Le Havre.
Gradually his work became more colourful and transparent. “The use of a palette knife in flat areas allowed him to create coloured impasto, of which successive layers created slight relief, playing with transparencies, traces, abrasions. This would lead after 1960 to what Debré himself called “fervent abstraction”, as Lydia Harambourg has noted.
“Fervent Abstraction” is for Debré emotion evoked by the contemplation of a landscape. The painter Debré then abandoned the sign in favour of the emotion. Olivier Debré said that “At a given moment, something freezes in the material itself, this is the reality of the emotion and there is a sort of nesting within me between a mental and a real atmosphere… we are always within ourselves and outside ourselves…. I paint in the emotion of a reality that begets me, myself…”
At the start of the 1960s, therefore, the painter Olivier Debré turned fully towards the landscape that would become from then on his field of exploration. He said that “I want to do abstract Courbet.” It is in contact with nature itself, most often working outside, that Debré created his paintings. Fully immersed in the landscape, he sought to remove any border between the perception of the landscape as observed and its expression on the canvas. Broad fields of colour are marked by fluid painting, weightless, in which light and transparency are allowed to dawn, punctuated by a few concretions that create a relief on the edges of the painting. These are the Sign-Landscapes.
In his new abstract compositions, Olivier Debré defied the classical composition of the painting to concentrate attention on an edge sometimes, or on a corner: this decentring favours the impression of fluidity and gives the composition movement. From the 1970s, Debré’s painting found its formal balance in the square format he favoured most often.
With Olivier Debré the canvas becomes an open space. From 1962, Debré created huge paintings, which were exhibited at the Palais Galliera in Paris in 1968 alongside sculptures by Gilioli.
At the end of the 1960s, Olivier Debré’s work was shown several times in Japan: first in a group show at the Nippon Gallery in 1967 and then three years later at a solo show in the same gallery. In 1970, Olivier Debré also participated in the International Art Exhibition at Osaka for which he created a monumental ceramic piece. In 1967, Olivier Debré exhibited a gigantic painting, Signe d’Homme, for the French pavilion at the Montreal International Exposition.
The painter Olivier Debré travelled around the world and the titles of his paintings bear witness to this roaming: Jerusalem, Dakar, Hong-Kong, Mexico… He frequently went to Norway in search of unusual landscapes and wrote Impressions de Voyages, published in the catalogue of his exhibition at the Galerie Ariel in Paris in 1973. Debré also regularly painted in his studio in the Touraine, at Les Madères: he settled along the banks of the Loire, the river that inspired him so much.
In the mid-1970s, several retrospectives of Olivier Debré’s paintings were held: at the Institut Français of New Delhi (1974), the Musée Picasso in Antibes (1975), the Musée d’Art et d’Industrie of Saint-Étienne (1975), the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1975), at the Musée des Beaux-Arts of Nantes (1976), and at the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff (1977).
A painter of large spaces, the artist projected his gesture into the canvas in a creative impetus that combined instantaneousness and speed. This sense of space was naturally used in Olivier Debré’s monumental paintings and in his public commissions: two large paintings for the boarding section of the Royal School (1965), two paintings in the amphitheatre of the Medical faculty of Toulouse (1968), two large canvases for the city of Amboise (1971), a monumental painting for the École Polytechnique at Palaiseau (1976), a mural for the French Embassy in Washington (1982), a large panel for the Hôpital Robert-Debré in Paris (1988)…
It is above all in major stage sets that this call of the open space took shape, especially in the various commissions received for stage curtains: for the Comédie Française (1987), for the Hong Kong Opera (1989), ordered by the Fondation Louis Vuitton for the Théâtre des Abbesses in Paris (1996) and for the new opera house in Shanghai (1999). Plunged into the immensity of the canvas, the artist, a sweeping brush in his hand, spread the colour, mixed in with it, had the experience of being totally immersed in the colour.
From 1980 to 1985, Olivier Debré was also the head of the mural painting studio at the l’École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris.
In 1995, a major retrospective of the artist Olivier Debré was held at the Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume in Paris. This exhibition then travelled around Europe, to Liège, Milan, Stravanger (Norway), and Reykjavik as well as Latin America, to Medellín (Colombia), Mexico, Rio de Janeiro.
In 1997, an entire ballet, Signes was devoted to the work of the painter Debré. This unique show, directed by the choreographer Carolyn Carlson with décors and costumes by Olivier Debré, brought together painting, music and dance around the painter’s work. Performed for the first time at the Bastille Opera in 1997, this contemporary ballet was again presented in the same opera house in 2013.
Olivier Debré was also involved in multiple artistic collaborations. He drew tapestry cartoons, a stamp, and numerous pieces of stained glass: for the chapel of Saint-Mandé in La Croix Hélléan and at the Collégiale Notre-Dame-de-Grande-Puissance in Lamballe, Brittany (1994).
Parallel to his painting, Olivier Debré continued to collaborate in printmaking and lithography projects. He illustrated several books by writers such as Michel Déon (Avant-jour 1998), Francis Ponge (Le soleil lu à la radio 1998), and Julien Gracq (Les Eaux étroites 1996).
Olivier Debré also made sculptures throughout his career, such as the monumental marble work that he created as a tribute to Charles de Gaulle for the City of Montréal (1992). He also created ceramics.
A few months before his death, he was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. The painter Olivier Debré died in 1999.
Since 2017 the Centre de Création Contemporaine Olivier Debré in Tours has shown works by Olivier Debré, alongside contemporary creations.
© Galerie Diane de Polignac / Astrid de Monteverde
Translation: Jane Mc Avock
Selected collections
Aalborg (Denmark), Kunsten Museum of Modern Art Aalborg
Amiens, Fond Régional d’Art Contemporain (FRAC) de Picardie
Amman (Jordan), The Jordan Museum
Antibes, Musée Picasso
Besançon, Fond Régional d’Art Contemporain (FRAC) de Franche-Comté
Bordeaux, Musée des Beaux-Arts
Bourg-en-Bresse, Musée de Brou
Brest, Musée des Beaux-Arts
Buffalo, NY, Albright Knox Art Gallery
Caen, Fond Régional d’Art Contemporain (FRAC) de Basse-Normandie
Caen, Musée des beaux-arts
Cambridge, Ma, Fogg Art Museum
Cardiff, National Museum of Wales
Castellanza (Italy), Museo Pagani, Arte Moderna e Contemporanea
Detroit, Mi, Ford Collection
Dunkirk, Lieu d’Art et Action contemporaine (LAAC)
Évreux, Musée d’Art, d’Histoire et d’Archéologie
Geneva, Fondation Gandur pour l’Art
Grenoble, Musée de Grenoble
Houston, Tx, De Menil Foundation
Jerusalem, Maison de France
Le Havre, Musée d’Art Moderne André-Malraux (MuMa)
Liège, Musée des Beaux-Arts
Luxembourg, Musée National d’Histoire et d’Art
Lyon, Musée des Beaux-Arts
Marseille, Musée Cantini
Medelin (Colombia), Museo de Arte Moderno
Metz, Musée de La Cour d’Or, Metz Métropole
Montauban, Musée Ingres
Nantes, Musée des Arts
New Delhi, Museum
Nice, Musée d’Art Moderne et d’Art Contemporain
Oslo, Astrup Fearnley Museet for Moderne Kunst
Paris, Fond Régional d’Art Contemporain (FRAC) d’Ile-de-France
Paris, Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris
Paris, Musée National d’Art Moderne, Centre Pompidou
Poitiers, Musée Sainte-Croix
Québec, Musée des Beaux-Arts
Reims, Fond Régional d’Art Contemporain (FRAC) de Champagne-Ardenne
Rennes, Musée des Beaux-Arts
Reykjavik, Reykjavik Museum of Art
Rio de Janeiro, Museu de Arte Moderna
Sables-d’Olonne, Musée de l’Abbaye de Sainte-Croix
Saint-Denis, Musée d’Art et d’Histoire
Saint-Etienne, Musée d’Art moderne de Saint-Etienne Métropole
Saint-Louis, Mo, The Art Museum
Saintes, Musée des Beaux-Arts, L’Echevinage
Sélestat, Fond Régional d’Art Contemporain (FRAC) d’Alsace
Sotteville-lès-Rouen, Fond Régional d’Art Contemporain (FRAC) de Haute-Normandie
South Bend, Indiana, Notre Dame University
Strasbourg, Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain
Taipei, Museum of Fine Arts of Taipei
Toulouse, Les Abattoirs
Tours, Musée des Beaux-Arts
Vitry-sur-Seine, Musée d’Art Contemporain du Val de Marne
Washington D.C., Hirshhorn Museum
Washington D.C., Philips Collection
Monumental works and public commissions
Two large paintings for the boarding section of the Collège de Royan, 1965
A large painting, Maison des Jeunes Travailleurs, Créteil, 1966
A monumental work, International Exposition of Montreal, Canada, 1967
A monumental work for the boarding school of Audruicq (Pas-de-Calais), 1968
Two oil paintings for the amphitheatre of the Medical Faculty of Toulouse, a painting on canvas for the administrative buildings, 1968
A large ceramic work, International Exposition, Osaka, 1969
Two large paintings town of Amboise, 1971
A large painting for the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 1972
A large painting on canvas, Lycée Rabelais, Chinon, 1975
A monumental painting for the École polytechnique, Palaiseau, 1976
A ceramic work for the external wall of the Nikko Hotel (now Novotel Paris Tour Eiffel), Paris, 1980
Large murals for the Lycée Technique of Belfort, 1980
Mural for the French Embassy, Washington, 1982
Décor and costumes for the work Racines, Festival d’Avignon, 1983
Commission from the French State for the stage curtain of the Comédie Française, Paris, unveiled in 1987
Painting for the grand staircase of the Mairie of Boulogne-Billancourt, 1988
Large panel for the Hôpital Robert-Debré, Paris, 1988
Monumental sculpture, boulevard Bourbon, Paris, 14th arrondissement, 1988
Stage curtain for the Opera of Hong-Kong, 1989
Monumental sculpture in marble, tribute to Charles de Gaulle for the City of Montreal, 1992
Ceramic wall for the Villa Kujoyama, Kyoto, 1992
Artists’ residences, Paris, 13th arrondissement, in association with the SCP Mazerand et Meyran, 1993
Ceramic for the metro station Les Arènes, Toulouse, 1993
Ceramic for the Daïkaku-ji Temple, Kyoto, 1993
Oil on canvas attached to the ceiling for the council chamber, RIVP, Paris 7th arrondissement, 1993
Works for the church Notre-Dame-de-la-Source, Compiègne, in association with the SCP Mazarand et Meyran, 1993-1996
Fountains for the motorways of the south of France (A9, A10, A11, A61), 1994
Group of four elements in steel painted red for the entrance of the Eurotunnel, Calais, 1994
Painting for the church Saint-Louis-d’Antin, Paris, 9th arrondissement, 1994
Stained glass for the chapel of Saint-Mandé, La Croix Hélléan (Morbihan), 1994
Stained glass for the Collégiale Notre-Dame-de-Grande-Puissance, Lamballe (Côtes d’Armor), France, including 3 windows in collaboration with Geneviève Asse, 1994
Paintings for the six galleries and the stage curtain for the Théâtre des Abbesses, Paris, 18th arrondissement, 1996
Décor and costumes for the ballet Signes by Carolyn Carlson, 1997
Stage curtain for the New Opera House of Shanghai in association with two Chinese painters Jing Shijian and Xu Jiang, 1998
Six Stained glass windows for the church of Notre-Dame-de-Lugagnac, Saint-Eutrope-de-Born (Lot-et-Garonne), 1998
Unveiling of the stained glass for the Collégiale Saint-Mexme of Chinon, 2006
Unveiling of the stained glass for the Collégiale Notre-Dame-de-Grande-Puissance, Lamballe (Côtes-d’Armor), 2008
Selected exhibitions
Salon d’Automne, Paris, 1948, 1950, 1952, 1965
Salon des Surindépendants, Paris, 1948, 1949
Solo exhibition, Galerie Bing, Paris, 1949
Group show, Perspectives Gallery, New York, 1950
Salon de Mai, Paris, 1950, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1991, 1998
Salon d’Octobre, Paris, 1952, 1953
Group show, Studio Facchetti, Paris, 1953, 1955
Salon Comparaisons, Paris 1954, 1957, 1962
Art 1955, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Rouen, 1955
Premio Lissone Internazionale per la Pittura, Lissone (Italy), 1955, 1959
Solo exhibition, Galerie Michel Warren, Paris, 1956
Salon des Réalités Nouvelles, Paris, 1957, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1967
Debré, Knoedler Galleries, New York, 1959
Olivier Debré, Philips Collection, Washington, 1959
Peintres d’Aujourd’hui / Pittori d’Oggi, Palazzo delle Arti, Vth Mostra, Turin, 1959
The John Moores Liverpool Exhibition 2, Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, 1959
École de Paris, 1960, Galerie Charpentier, Paris, 1960
Solo exhibition, Galerie Charpentier, Paris, 1960
Solo exhibitions, Galerie Knoedler, Paris, 1960, 1963
Prix Marzotto, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, 1960
Solo exhibition, Galerie Ronca Hans, Lucerne, 1962
Solo exhibition, Galleria Pagani del Grattacielo, Milan, 1962
Solo exhibition, Musée de l’Athénée, Geneva, 1962, 1972
Salon Grands et Jeunes d’Aujourd’hui, Paris, 1962, 1965, 1999
Debré, Knoedler & Co., New York, 1963
Salon d’Art Contemporain, Grand Palais, Paris, 1963
Biennale de Peinture, Menton, 1964
XIXème Salon des Réalités Nouvelles, Maison de la Culture, Namur, 1964
Peinture Contemporaine en France, travelling group exhibition in Finland, Ateneum, Helsinki; Fine Arts Museum, Turku, 1965
Sculptures de Peintres, group show, Galerie Claude Bernard, Paris, 1965
Climat 66, group show, Musée de la Peinture et de Sculpture, Grenoble, 1966
Solo exhibition, Collège Culturel de Merzé, Cluny, 1966
Solo exhibitions, Galerie Haaken, Oslo, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1979, 1985, 1990, 1992, 1994
Olivier Debré. Malerei, Galerie Appel und Fertsch, Frankfurt, 1966
Olivier Debré. Peintures 1943-1966, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Le Havre, 1966
Tapis Français Contemporains, travelling group exhibition in Belgium, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Namur; Maison de la Culture, Namur, 1966
1967 50-57, Une Aventure de l’Art Abstrait, travelling group exhibition in France: Musée Galliera, Paris; Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nantes; Musée des Beaux-Arts, Brest; Musée des Beaux-Arts, Orléans; Maison de la Culture, Le Creusot; Maison de la Culture, Lorient; Musée de la Culture, Reims, 1967
Dix Ans d’Art Vivant (55-65), group exhibition, Fondation Maeght, Saint-Paul-de-Vence, 1967
Solo exhibition, Galerie Cavalero, Cannes, 1967, 1977
L’Age du Jazz, group exhibition, Musée Galliera, Paris, 1967
L’Art Moderne en Europe, Expo 67, Pavillon de la Communauté Européenne, Montreal, 1967
Peinture Ininterrompue I, Musée d’Art Moderne, Céret, 1967
Quinze Artistes Français, group exhibition, Nippon Gallery, Tokyo, 1967
Rajzes Akwarell Franciaor Szàgban – Matisse Tôl Napjainkig, group exhibition, Müscarnok, Prague, 1967
Vingt Peintres du XXème siècle, group exhibition, Cimaise HEC, Jouy-en-Josas, 1967
IIème Biennale des Artistes de Cachan et de l’Île-de-France, Hôtel de Ville, Cachan, 1968
Olivier Debré, Peintures – Gilioli, Sculptures, Musée Galliera, Paris, 1968
Dix-huit Peintures, Maison de la Culture, Caen, 1969
Debré. Œuvres de 1940 à 1969, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Brest, 1969
Vingt Ans d’Acquisitions 1948-1968, Musée des Augustins, Toulouse, 1969
International Exhibition, Expo 70, Osaka, 1970
Oliver Debré, Nippon Gallery, Tokyo, 1970
Olivier Debré, Galleria Pagani, Milan, 1970
Biennale de Montrouge, Montrouge, 1971
Solo exhibitions, Galerie Ariel, 1973, 1974, 1976
Solo exhibition, Galerie Bettie Thommen, Basel, 1973
Solo exhibition, Institut Français, New Delhi, 1974
Olivier Debré (dessins, sculptures, 1941-1974), Musée de l’Abbaye de Sainte-Croix, Les Sables-d’Olonne, 1974
Solo exhibition, Musée Picasso, Antibes, 1975
Olivier Debré – Rétrospective, Musée d’Art et d’Industrie et Maison de la Culture et des Loisirs, Saint-Étienne, 1975
Olivier Debré. De la peinture au Dessin, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, 1975
Solo exhibition, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nantes, 1976
Solo exhibition, Artcurial, Paris, 1976 (Debré, sculptures) and 1990 (Olivier Debré. Lithographies et gravures 1945-1990)
Certitude de l’Incertain, group exhibition, Musée Cantini, Marseille, 1977
Solo exhibition, National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, 1977
Solo exhibition, Nordjyllands Kunstmuseum, Aalborg (Denmark), Copenhagen, Lyngby Kunstforening, 1978
L’espace du Temps. Abstraction des Années Cinquante en France, Maison de la Culture, 1978
Solo exhibition, Galerie Nord, Randers (Denmark), 1979
Solo exhibition, Galerie Riis, Trondheim (Norway), 1979; Galerie Riis, Oslo, 1982
Solo exhibition, Maison de la Culture, Montbéliard, 1979
Solo exhibition, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Liège, 1979
Solo exhibition, Museet iVarberg, Varberg (Sweden), 1979
Solo exhibitions, Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris, 1979, 1984, 1986, 1989
Olivier Debré. Bilder Skulpturen, Forum Kunst, Rottweil (RFA), 1979
Solo exhibition, Musée d’Art Moderne, Strasbourg, 1980
Solo exhibition, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Tours, 1980
Solo exhibition, Musée Sainte-Croix, Poitiers, 1980
Olivier Debré, Fondation du Château de Jau, Cases-de-Pène (Perpignan), 1980
Art Contemporain en France, 1960-1980, Musée national jordanien, Amman (Jordan), 1981
Solo exhibition, Abbaye de Fontevraud, Fontevraud, 1981
Solo exhibition, Galerie Hans Strelow, Düsseldorf, 1981
Abstraction Lyrique, group exhibition, Centre Culturel, Aubagne, 1982
Solo exhibitions, Galerie K., Washington, 1982, 1983
Solo exhibitions, Gimpel & Weitzenhoffer Gallery, New York, 1982, 1983
Saint-Nazaire 1982, group exhibition, Musée de Saint-Nazaire, Bourbon-Lancy, 1982
Twelve Contemporary French Artists, group travelling exhibition in the USA: Albright Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo; The Rice University, Houston; De Menil Foundation, Houston, 1982-1983
Oliver Debré: Abstract Works on Canvas, Meredith Long & Company, Houston, 1983
Solo exhibition, Galerie Asbaek, Copenhagen, 1984
Solo exhibition, International Art Gallery, Chicago, 1984
Galerie Daniel Gervis, Paris, 1984, 1989
Oliver Debré – Grands Formats 1982-1984, Pavillon des Arts, Paris, 1984
Olivier Debré. Peintures. Lithographies. Sculptures, Ecole Régionale des Beaux-Arts, Valence, 1984
Peinture en France, group exhibition, Palazzo Sagredo, Venice, 1984
Peinture, Peinture, Maison de la Culture, Bourges, 1984
Solo exhibition, Château de Poudres, Sommières, 1985
Olivier Debré. Œuvres Récentes, Musée de Brou, Bourg-en-Bresse, 1985
Olivier Debré, Musée Dynamique, Dakar, 1986
Olivier Debré, Peintures de 1943 à 1986, Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, Metz, 1986
Olivier Debré. Estampes et Encres de Chine, Théâtre Municipal, Caen, 1986
Peintures, Encres de Chine, Sculptures, Musée Hébert, La Tronche (Grenoble), 1986
Olivier Debré, Abbaye des Cordeliers, Châteauroux, 1987
Olivier Debré: l’Œuvre Gravé, Bibliothèque Nationale, Rotonde Colbert, Paris, 1987
Silence Un, group exhibition, Cloître Saint-Pierre-le-Jeune, Strasbourg, 1987
Abstractions Lyriques: Paris 1945-1955, group travelling exhibition in France: Nouveau Théâtre, Angers; Chapelle Saint-Julien, Laval; Aire libre Art Contemporain Agora, Évry; Musée du Mans, Le Mans; Palais des Congrès, Saint-Jean-de-Monts, 1988-1989
Notes de Voyage d’Olivier Debré, Maison de la Culture de Nevers et de la Nièvre, Nevers, 1988
Olivier Debré: Peintures, Musée Ingres, Montauban, 1988
Olivier Debré. Œuvres monumentales 1966-1988, Centre Culturel, Boulogne-Billancourt, 1988
Solo exhibition, Château de Tours, Tours, 1989
Solo exhibition, Institut Français, Hambourg, 1989
FDAC Val de Marne: Acquisitions 1988, group exhibition, Hôtel du Département, Créteil, 1989
Fondation Daniel Templon: Exposition Inaugurale, group exhibition, Musée Temporaire, Fréjus, 1989
Saint-Germain-des-Prés 1945-1950, group exhibition, Pavillon des Arts, Paris, 1989
Olivier Debré. Œuvres Récentes 1988-1989-1990, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Carcassonne, 1990
Debré. Dessins 1945-1960, Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, Saint-Denis, 1990
Solo exhibition (designs for the stage curtain for the Hong Kong Opera), Fondation Louis-Vuitton pour l’Opéra et la Musique, Musicora, Grand Palais, Paris, 1990
Solo exhibition, Maison des Arts et Loisirs, Laon, 1990
Jean Grenier: Regard sur la Peinture 1944-1971, Musée des Jacobins, Morlaix, 1990
L’Opéra de la Vie: Olivier Debré, Fort Napoléon, La Seyne-sur-Mer, 1990
Les Peintres et les Livres, Centre Régional d’Art Contemporain Midi-Pyrénées, Labège, 1990
Olivier Debré et José Subira-Puig, group exhibition, Centre d’Art Contemporain, Mont-de-Marsan, 1990
Expositions personnelles, Galerie du Luxembourg, Luxembourg, 1991, 1995
Olivier Debré, Quatre Tableaux, Centre de Création Contemporaine, Tours, 1991
Solo exhibition, Château d’Amboise, 1992
Solo exhibition, Yoshii Gallery, Tokyo, 1992, 2003
Solo exhibition, Hôtel du département, La Roche-sur-Yon, 1992
Solo exhibition, Institut Français d’Écosse, Edinburgh, 1992
Solo exhibition, Institut français du Royaume Uni, London, 1992
Solo exhibition, Maison de la Culture/ Nouveau Théâtre, Angers, 1992
Libres Espaces, Direction régionale des Douanes, Strasbourg, 1992
Olivier Debré. Estampes, Le Majorat, Villeneuve-Tolosane, 1992
Olivier Debré. Œuvres de 1948 à 1990, Musée Denys-Puech, Rodez, 1992
Paysage en Exergue: Dix Années d’Enrichissement du Fonds Régional d’Art Contemporain, Espace Art Brenne, Le Blanc, 1992
Quinze Artistes. Quinze stations, Centre culturel Aérospatiale, Toulouse, 1992
En 50 Figures de l’Abstrait: les Grands Courants de l’art Contemporain, Palais Bénédictine, Fécamp, 1993
Entre la Sérénité et l’Inquiétude, group exhibition, Musée d’Art moderne, Saint-Étienne, 1993
Solo exhibition, Galeria Charpa, Valencia, 1993
Olivier Debré. 50 Tableaux pour un Timbre, Musée de la Poste, Paris, 1993
Olivier Debré. Anatomie du Sourire. Eaux-fortes et Texts Originaux, Galerie Jeanne Bucher, Paris, 1993
Olivier Debré. Rétrospective 1943-1993, exhibition organized in three sections: Les Signes-Personnages, la Verticalité, Château des ducs de Wurtemberg, Montbéliard, Les Signes-Paysages, l’Espace, Musée de Valence, 1993
Les Carnets de Voyages, La Couleur, Musée Fesch, Ajaccio, 1993
Olivier Debré. Rétrospective 1943-1993, repetition of the three sections of the exhibition with the addition of a section on Architecture, Théâtre de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Montigny-le-Bretonneux, 1993
Olivier Debré. Rétrospective, Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume, Paris, 1995; the exhibition then travelled around Europe: Liège, Milan, Stravanger (Norway), Reykjavik, and then Latin America: Medellín (Colombia), Mexico, Rio de Janeiro, 1996-1997
Olivier Debré. Un peintre dans la ville, Espace Jean Legendre, Compiègne, 1995
Signes, exhibition held during the Festival d’Art et de Musique, Galerie de la Prévôté, Aix-en-Provence, 1995
Solo exhibition, Städtische Galerie, Lienz (Austria), 1996
La Dimension du Corps 1920-1980, group exhibition, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo; National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, 1996
Olivier Debré, Centre Culturel, Ancien Carmel, Tarbes, 1996
Olivier Debré. 50 Ans d’Estampes, Île des Impressionnistes, Chatou, and then travelled around Ukraine, Latvia, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore, 1996
Olivier Debré. Carnets de Voyage, Galleria Francese, Rome, 1996
Olivier Debré. Maleri, Baroniet Rosendal, Rosendal (Norway), 1996
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Galleria Credito Valtellinese, refettorio delle Stelline, Milan, 1996
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Musée d’Art, Reykjavik, 1996
Olivier Debré. Rétrospective, Musée Saint-Georges, Liège, 1996
Salon Coup de Cœur. 40 Amateurs Collectionneurs Présentent 80 Artistes, Espace Cardin, Paris, 1996
Olivier Debré, Château d’Ô, Montpellier, 1997
Olivier Debré. Paintings and Prints, 1948-1996, Alex Gallery, Washington DC, 1997
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Museum of Modern Art, Medellin (Colombia), 1997
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Museum of Modern Art, Rio de Janeiro, 1997
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Museum of Fine Arts, Mexico, 1997
Première Biennale de la Gravure d’Île-de-France, Domaine de Madame Élisabeth, Versailles, 1997
70ème Exposition du Cercle Municipal des Gobelins et des Beaux-Arts, Mairie du XIIIème arrondissement, Paris, 1998
Artists in Situ, Banque et Caisse d’Épargne de l’État, Luxembourg; Galerie d’Art Contemporain Am Tunnel, Luxembourg, 1998
Autour de Georges Duby, Galerie d’art du Conseil Général, Aix-en-Provence, 1998
Olivier Debré en Norvège, Musée Astrup Fearnley, Oslo, 1998
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Museum of Modern Art, Hong-Kong, 1998
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura (Japan), 1998
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Museum of History, Beijing, 1998
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Museum of Fine Arts, Taipei, 1998
30 Artistes 1969-1999. Hommage à Olivier Debré, Galerie d’Art de l’Assemblée Nationale, Paris, 1999
Julius Baltazar, Frédéric Benrath, Jean Cortot, Olivier Debré, Pierre Dmitrienko, Roseline Granet, René Làubiès, Alfred Manessier, André Marfaing, Jaroslav Serpan, Raoul Ubac, Zao Wou-Ki, Galerie Simon Blais, Montreal, 1999
Olivier Debré et Richard Texier, Galerie d’Art Contemporain de Bécheron, Saché, 1999
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Musée d’Ettlingen, Ettlingen (Germany), 1999
Olivier Debré. Retrospective, Musée Ludwig, Koblenz, 1999
Hommage à Olivier Debré, École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 2000
Olivier Debré à Shanghai, Maison de la Chine, Paris, 2000
Olivier Debré, la Loire… et ses Amis, Château, Musée international de la Chasse, Gien, 2000
Olivier Debré, Peintures de 1963 à 1999, Centre d’Arts Plastiques, Royan, 2000
Hommage à Six Peintres de la Galerie, Galerie Ariel, Paris, 2001
L’Estampe. Le Paysage, de Charles-François Daubigny à Nos Jours, Mairie, Aulnay-sous-Bois, 2001
L’Iris en Fleur, Fondation Vincent-Van-Gogh, Arles, 2001
Olivier Debré. Couleurs de Paysages, Musée Pincé, Angers, 2001
Signes, Traces, Ecritures de Alechinsky à Zao Wou-Ki, Centre National d’Art et de Culture Georges- Pompidou, Paris, 2001
50 Ans de la Galerie Ariel, Galerie Ariel, Paris, 2002
Collection d’hiver, Art Contemporain, Monastère R de Brou, Bourg-en-Bresse, 2002
Créations Contemporaines, Manufactures Nationales, Sèvres, 2002
La Nouvelle École de Paris 1941-1965, Centre d’Art contemporain, Abbaye de Beaulien, Ginals, 2002
Olivier Debré, Casa de Francia, Mexico, 2002
Olivier Debré. Rétrospective, Alianza Francesa, Monterrey (Mexico), 2002
Philippe Cognée, Olivier Debré, Galerie Haaken Oslo, 2002
Solo exhibitions, Galerie Louis Carré & Cie, Paris, 2003, 2004 (8ème pavillon des Antiquaires et des Beaux-Arts, Paris), 2005 (FIAC-Porte de Versailles, Paris), 2009, 2011, 2013
Olivier Debré. Œuvres de la Dation, Centre Georges-Pompidou, Paris, 2003
Lieu(x) d’Etre-Collection les Abattoirs, Centre d’Art Contemporain Georges-Pompidou, Cajarc, 2004
Regard sur l’Art Contemporain, Atelier Grognard Rond-Point des Arts, Rueil-Malmaison, 2004
50 Ans de Peinture en France, une Galerie, une Collection, Musée de Cahors Henri-Martin, Cahors, 2005
Olivier Debré, Antoine Poncet, Atrium, Geneva, 2005
Portraits de Sylvie, Galerie J. Bastien Art, Brussels, 2005
L’Envolée Lyrique. Paris 1945-1956, Musée du Luxembourg, Paris, 2006
Gestes, Signes, Traces, Espaces, Musée Malraux, Le Havre, 2007
Hommage à André Marfaing, Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain les Abattoirs, Toulouse, 2007
L’Action Pensive Issy-les-Moulineaux, Johnson & Johnson, Couleurs, Couleurs, Musée de Gajac, Villeneuve-sur-Lot, 2007
Olivier Debré. Grands Formats, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Angers, 2007
Olivier Debré. Loire… Paysages Abstraits, Musée des Beaux-Arts et d’Archéologie J. Déchelette, Roanne, 2007
Olivier Debré. Parcours 1943-1998, Musée de Cahors Henri-Martin, Cahors, 2007
Olivier Debré. Voyages, Musée de Millau, Millau, 2007
La Poétique de l’Eau Pont-Aven, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Pont-Aven 2008
Olivier Debré, Peintre Voyageur de la Touraine au Monde, Château de Chenonceau, Chenonceau, 2008
Olivier Debré. Paysages de Loire, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Orléans, 2008
Repartir à Zéro, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lyon, 2008
Une Grosse Caisse dans un Orchestre Symphonique. Patrimoine et création, Centre d’Art contemporain, Maison de la Cure, Saint-Restitut, 2008
Abstractions (1956- 2006), Musée Fabre, Montpellier, 2009
Arte & Natura, Museo Villa dei Cedri, Bellinzona (Switzerland), 2009
Autour de Pierre Cabanne, Galerie Guillaume, Paris, 2009
La Peinture de Paysage. Chemins d’une Collection, Espace Fondation EDF, Paris, 2009
Olivier Debré, de Loire et d’Ailleurs, Musée de l’Hôtel-Dieu, Mantes-la-Jolie, 2009
Olivier Debré, Signes-Paysages / Grands Formats, Espace d’art contemporain Fernet-Branca, Saint-Louis, 2009
Olivier Debré, Signes-Personnages, Lieu d’Art et d’Action Culturel LAAC, Dunkirk, 2009
Olivier Debré/Etienne Hajdu, Galerie Bernard Ceysson, Luxembourg, 2009
Picasso, Matisse, Dubuffet, Bacon… Les Modernes s’Exposent, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lyon, 2009
100 Ans de Peinture en Bretagne (1880-1980) & La Loire par Olivier Debré, Galerie Doyen, Vannes, 2010
L’Enfance de l’Art, Galerie d’art du Conseil Général, Aix-en-Provence, 2010
Olivier Debré, Musée National d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Alger, 2010
Olivier Debré. Signes-Paysages, Signes Gravés, Musée de la Cohue, Vannes, 2010
Signes-Paysages, Musée Ziem, Martigues, 2010
Kings of Art, Kalmar Castle, Kalmar (Sweden), 2011
Les Sujets de l’Abstraction. 101 Chefs-d’Œuvre de la Fondation Gandur pour l’Art, Musée Rath, Geneva; Musée Fabre, Montpellier, 2011
Olivier Debré. Un Abstrait Lyrique. Rétrospective, Musée d’Ixelles, Brussels, 2011
Parole & Figure, Museo Villa dei Cedri, Bellinzona (Switzerland), 2011
Regard sur l’abstraction Lyrique, Montparnasse and Saint- Germain-des-Prés, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Carcassonne, 2011
Art Paris, Galerie Jeane Bastien, 2012
L’Art en Guerre, France 1938-1947, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, 2012, Travelling exhibition: Arte en Guerra, Francia 1938-1947; Museo Guggenheim, Bilbao, 2013
Montparnasse/Saint-Germain-des-Prés, un Certain Regard sur l’Abstraction Lyrique, group travelling exhibition, Anciennes Ecuries des Ardoisières, Trélazé, then Montparnasse/Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Abstractions d’Après-Guerre, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Bordeaux, 2012
De l’Impressionnisme à l’Abstraction, une Immersion dans la Peinture, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Saint-Lô, 2013
Montparnasse/ Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Regards sur l’Abstraction 1950-1990, travelling exhibition, Palais du Roi de Rome, Rambouillet; Musée de Tessé, Le Mans, 2013
Olivier Debré, Signes-Personnages, Signes-Paysages, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Carcassonne, 2013
Olivier Debré. Les Années 1950-1960, Galerie Brame & Lorenceau, Paris, 2013
Olivier Debré, Galerie Diane de Polignac, 2014, 2017
Olivier Debré. Un voyage en Norvège, Centre de Création Contemporaine Olivier Debré, Tours, 2017
Les Nymphéas d’Olivier Debré, Centre de Création Contemporaine Olivier Debré, Tours, 2019
Selected bibliography
Pierre Courthion (text), exhibition catalogue, Knoedler Galleries, New York, 1959
Dora Vallier (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Knoedler, Paris, 1960
Giorgio Kaisserlian (text), exhibition catalogue, Galleria Pagani del Grattacielo, Milan, 1962
Pierre Courthion (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée de l’Athénée, Geneva, 1962
Francis Ponge, exhibition catalogue, Galerie Knoedler, Paris, 1963
Francis Ponge, exhibition catalogue, Knoedler Gallery, New York, 1963
Jean Lescure (text), exhibition catalogue, Nouveau Musée des beaux-arts, Le Havre, 1966
Julien Alvard (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Appel und Fertsch, Francfort, 1966
Magne Malmanger, exhibition catalogue, Galerie Haaken, Oslo, 1966
Pierre Courthion, Debré, Georges Fall, collection Le Musée de Poche, Paris, 1967
Marie-Claude Dane, Pierre Courthion, Julien Alvard and Francis Ponge, (5 texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée Galliera, Paris, 1968
Pierre Courthion and Marie-Claude Dane, exhibition catalogue, Galerie des Beaux-Arts, Bordeaux, 1968
Robert Marteau, Georges Badin, René Le Bihan and Roger van Gindertaël (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Brest, 1969.
Daniel Abadie, exhibition catalogue, Centre culturel du Prieuré, Vivoin, 1970
Pierre Courthion (text), exhibition catalogue, Galleria Pagani, Milan, 1970
Henri-François Debailleux (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée des beaux-arts, Carcassonne, 1990
Olivier Debré (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Ariel, Paris. 1973
Claude Fournet and Daniel Abadie (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée de l’Abbaye Sainte-Croix, Les Sables-d’Olonne, 1974
Pierre Courthion (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Numaga, Auvernier (Switzerland), 1974
Bernard Ceysson (preface), Alfred Pacquement, Marcelin Pleynet, Dominique Ponnau, Pierre Torreilles et Jean Lescure (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée d’Art et d’Industrie/Maison de la Culture et des Loisirs, Saint-Étienne, 1975
Jacques Lassaigne and Daniel Abadie (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, 1975
Bernard Noël, exhibition catalogue, Galerie Ariel, Paris, 1976
Gaston Diehl and Daniel Abadie (text), exhibition catalogue, National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, 1977
Daniel Abadie (text), exhibition catalogue, Nordjyllands Kunstmuseum, Aalborg and Lyngby kunstforening, Copenhagen, 1978
Olivier Debré and Edmond Jabes (text), interview with Olivier Debré and Sophie Guillot de Suduiraut, Nadine Lehni, Jean-Marc Reol, exhibition catalogue, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Tours; Musée Sainte-Croix, Poitiers; Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Strasbourg, 1980
Pierre Cabanne (text), exhibition catalogue, Fondation du Château de Jau, Cases-de-Pène (Perpignan), 1980
Bernard Noël, Olivier Debré, Flammarion, Paris, 1984
Perrier et David Le Breton (texts), exhibition catalogue, Maison de la Culture, Bourges, 1984
David Ojalvo and Gilbert Lascault (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée des beaux-arts, Orléans, 1985
Marie-Françoise Poiret, Bernard Ceysson, Alain Rerat (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée de Brou, Bourg-en-Bresse, 1985
Bernard Noël (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée Dynamique, Dakar, 1986
Bernard Noël, (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, Metz, 1986
Henry Nesme (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée Hébert, La Tronche (Grenoble), 1986
Bernard Noël, (sous la direction), Olivier Debré: le Rideau de la Comédie-Française, Librairie Séguier, Paris, 1987
Bernard Noël, (text), exhibition catalogue, Abbaye des Cordeliers, Châteauroux, 1987
Bernard Noël, Olivier Debré, Éditions Aréa, collection Initiale, Paris, 1988
Bruno Foucart (text); entretien d’Olivier Debré par Marilys de la Morandière and Bruno Foucart, exhibition catalogue, Centre Culturel, Boulogne-Billancourt, 1988
Michel Faucher, Debré: Palpeur de l’Espace, Fragments Éditions, Collection Passeports, Paris, 1988
Pierre Barousse (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée Ingres, Montauban, 1988
Bernard Noël, Olivier Debré: le Rideau de Scène de l’Opéra de Hong-Kong, Librairie Séguier, Paris, 1989
Bernard Noël, (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, Saint-Denis, 1990
Bernard Noël, Debré. Dessins 1945-1960, Adam Biro, Paris, 1990
Jean-Clarence Lambert, Debré. Gravures 1990, Éditions Lacourière et Frélaut, Paris, 1990
Jean-Claude Lambert and Emmanuel Pernoud (texts), exhibition catalogue, Artcurial, Paris, 1990
Alain Julien-Laferriere and Bernard Lamarche-Vadel (texts), exhibition catalogue, Centre de Création Contemporaine, Tours, 1991
Emmanuel Pernoud (text), exhibition catalogue, Artothèque, Toulouse; Institut français d’Écosse, Edinburgh; Institut français du Royaume-Uni, London; Le Majorat, Villeneuve-Tolosane, 1991
Emmanuel Pernoud, L’Esprit des Débuts, Fragments Éditions, collection Passeport, Paris, 1991
Gilbert Lascault and Francis Ponge (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée de Laval; Hôtel du Département, La Roche-sur-Yon; Maison de la Culture/ Nouveau Théâtre, Angers; Musée Denys-Puech, Rodez, 1991
Haaken A. Christensen (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Haaken, Oslo, 1991
Haaken A. Christensen, Olivier Debré et Lœrdal, Flammarion, Paris, 1991
Lucien Kayser (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie du Luxembourg, Luxembourg, 1991
Pierre Cabanne, Olivier Debré, Cercle d’Art, Paris, 1991
Shinichi Segi (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Yoshii, Tokyo, 1991
Emmanuel Pernoud, Olivier Debré, les Estampes et les Livres Illustrés 1945-1991, Publications de la Sorbonne, Paris, 1993
Jean-Pierre Cuzin, Jean-François Mozziconacci, Hélène Moulin, Marie-Dominique Roche, Philippe Dagen, Dominique Boudou, Jean Terrail (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musées, Château des ducs de Wurtemberg, Montbéliard; Museum, Valencia; Musée Fesch, Ajaccio;
Théâtre de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Montigny-le-Bretonneux, 1993
Maïten Bouisset (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée de la Poste, Paris, 1993
Lydia Harambourg, L’Ecole De Paris, 1945-1965 : Dictionnaire Des Peintres, Lausanne, Ides et Calendes, 1993
Alin Avila et Kenworth W. Moffett (texts), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Gérald Piltzer, Paris, 1994
Irmgard Bohunovsky, Dominique Boudou, Olivier Debre, Jean-François Mozziconacci (texts), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Carinthia, Ossiach (Slovenia), 1994
Maximilien Guyol (text), exhibition catalogue, Galeria Charpa, Valencia, 1994
Achille Bonito Oliva, Georges Duby, Andreas Franzke and Ann Hindry (texts), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume, Paris, 1995
Jean-Jacques Lévêque, Olivier Debré, Journal d’un Eté, Adam Biro, Paris, 1995
Achille Bonito Oliva and Daniel Abadie (texts), exhibition catalogue, Galleria Francese, Rome, 1996
Françoise-Claire Prodhon (interview with Olivier Debré, Paris, 1985), Île des Impressionnistes, Chatou, 1996
Lydia Harambourg, Olivier Debré, Ides et Calendes, collection Polychrome, Neuchâtel, 1997
Pierre Torreilles and Francis Ponge (texts), exhibition catalogue, Château d’O, Montpellier, 1997
Magne Malmanger (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée Astrup Fearnley, Oslo, 1998
Gérard Xuriguera (text), exhibition catalogue, Espace Riquet, Béziers, 1999
Haaken A. Christensen, Olivier Debré, Fragments Éditions, collection Épisode, Paris, 2000
Jean Ristat, Olivier Debré. Le Théâtre de la Peinture, Fragments Éditions, Paris, 2000
Michel Butor, Dix Regards sur l’Atelier Désert, Ides et Calendes, Neuchâtel, 2000
Collective publication, Pour Olivier Debré, l’Échoppe, Paris, 2000
Philippe Piguet (text), exhibition catalogue, Centre d’Arts Plastiques, Royan, 2000
Daniel Abadie, exhibition catalogue, Galerie de l’Alliance Française, Monterrey (Mexico), 2002
Françoise Marquet (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie J. Bastien-Art, Brussels, 2002
Éric de Chassey, exhibition catalogue, Galerie Louis Carré & Cie, Paris, 2003
Laurence Ejzyn (text), J. Bastien Art, Brussels, 2005
Éric de Chassey, Lydia Harambourg, Olivier Debré, Expressions Contemporaines, Angers, 2007
Laure Meunier, Sylvie Huerre-Debré, Lydia Harambourg and Daniel Chabrissoux (texts), exhibition catalogue, Château de Chenonceau, Chenonceau, 2008
Olivier Debré (text from the exhibition catalogue of the Galerie Ariel de 1973), J. Bastien Art, Brussels, 2008
Daniel Abadie, exhibition catalogue, Galerie Louis Carré & Cie, Paris, 2009
Gérard Cahn (text), exhibition catalogue, Espace d’Art Contemporain Fernet-Branca, Saint-Louis, 2009
Mohamed Djehiche, Éric de Chassey (texts), exhibition catalogue, Musée National d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Alger, 2010
Lydia Harambourg, L’École de Paris, 1945-1965, Dictionnaire des peintres, Ides et Calendes, Neuchâtel, 1993, (update by Clotilde Scordia, Ides et Calendes, Neuchâtel, 2010)
Éric de Chassey, Jean-Paul Ameline, exhibition catalogue, Musée Rath, Geneva, 2011
Philippe Bouchet, exhibition catalogue, Galerie Louis Carré & Cie, Paris, 2011
Daniel Abadie, Olivier Debré, signes paysages, signes personnages, Tesserete, Pagine d’Arte, 2012
Lydia Harambourg (text), exhibition catalogue, Anciennes écuries des Ardoisières, Trélazé, 2012
Laurence Bertrand-Dorléac, Jacqueline Munck (editors), Fabrice Hergott (preface), L’Art en guerre, France 1937-1947, exhibition catalogue, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, 2012
Laurence Bertrand-Dorléac and Jacqueline Munck (editors), Fabrice Hergott (preface), Ruan Ignacio Vidarte (preface), Arte en Guerra, Francia, 1937-1947, exhibition catalogue, Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, 2013
Daniel Abadie (text), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Louis Carré & Cie, Paris, 2013
Lydia Harambourg (text), exhibition catalogue, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Carcassonne, 2013
Lydia Harambourg, Olivier Debré, Ides et Calendes, collection Polychrome, Neuchâtel, 2013
Khalil de Chazournes & Diane de Polignac (preface), Daniel Abadie, (interview with Olivier Debré from the exhibition catalogue Olivier Debré, Musée d’Art et d’Industrie / Maison de la Culture et des Loisirs, Saint-Étienne, 1975), exhibition catalogue, Galerie Diane de Polignac, Paris, 2014
Illustrated books
Francis Ponge, Pour Olivier Debré, Galerie Knoedler, Paris, 1963. Limited edition. 2 original lithographs
La Réalité en sa totalité, Georges Fall, Paris, 1968. 1 colour aquatint for the early impressions
Paroles peintes IV, Lazar-Vernet, Paris, 1970. Poemes by Edith Boissonnas (translated by Edward Lucie-Smith). 1 carborundum print
Olivier Debré, Impressions de voyage, in Ariel 27, Galerie Ariel, Paris, 1973. 2 original lithographs
Clivages, Paris, n°3, 1975. 1 aquatint on the frontispiece and the cover
Pierre Torreilles, Pratique de la Poésie, Montpellier, Fata Morgana, 1977. 1 print
Pierre Torreilles, Toutes les Aubes Conjuguées, Thierry Bouchard, Losne, 1978. 3 prints including one on the cover
Jean-Baptiste Lysland, Le Visage Intérieur, Brandes, Roubaix, 1980. 2 prints
James Sacré, Quelque Chose De Mal Raconté, Ryoân-Ji, Marseille, 1981. 2 prints
Jean-Clarence Lambert, Mu Tei, Le Limitrope, Paris, 1982. 13 original lithographs
Bernard Noël (text), El Tretze Vènts, Carte blanche, Montmorency, 1983. 2 lithographs
Claude Margat, Regard Dedans, Éditions Unes, Trans-en-Provence, 1984. 1 print
Djuna Barnes (Translated from English by Michèle Causse), Aux Abysses, Ryoân-ji, Marseille, 1984. 1 composition on the cover
Djuna Barnes (Translated from English by Michèle Causse), Divagations malicieuses, Ryoân-Ji, Marseille, 1984. 1 composition on the cover
Bernard Noël (text), Corps 12 (collaborative work by 12 writers and 12 painters), Fondation 1985 Royaumont, Royaumont, 1985. 1 print
Bernard Noël, Le Livre de l’oubli, Ryoân-Ji, Marseille, 1985. 8 prints
Franck-André Jamme, Pour les simples, Fata, Morgana, Montpellier, 1987. 2 prints
Olivier Debré, L’Espace et le Comportement, L’Échoppe, collection Envois, Caen, 1987. 1 print
Bernard Noël, Sur un Pli du temps, Les Cahiers des brisants, Saint-Perdon, 1988. 5 prints
James Sacré, Une Fin d’Après-Midi à Marrakech, Ryoân-ji, Marseille, 1988, 1 composition on the cover
André Morain, Les Ambassadeurs, La Différence, Paris, 1989. 1 lithograph accompanying the early impression
Michel-Ange, Lettres Familières, 1497-1509, L’Échoppe, Caen, 1989. 1 drypoint
Patrice Huerre, Perocco le Perroquet, L’École des Loisirs, Paris, 1989. Illustrations
Bernard Noël, Sur le Peu de Corps, Les Cahiers des brisants, Saint-Perdon, 1990. 8 prints
Bernard Vargaftig, VOICI ou un Souffle à Travers “Journal du Regard” by Bernard Noël, Xonrupt-Longemer, Æncrages & Co., 1990. 1 original drawing
Edmond Jabès, Bâtir à Chaux et à Sable, Nouveau Cercle Parisien du Livre, Paris, 1990. 14 prints
Franck-André Jamme, La Vie est Trop Courte, Sous Le Manteau, 1991. 5 painted traces.
Michel Butor, Sous le Noir, Zoé Cristiani, Paris, 1991. 5 prints
Paul Valéry, text Poésie, introduced by Michel Decaudin, Paris, Imprimerie Nationale, 1991. 2 original prints
Claude Fournet, Portrait de l’Homme qui se Farde, followed by L’homme qui Tombe, Galilée, Paris, 1992. 2 original lithographs
Mathieu Bénéze; Bernard Noël, Bernard Vargaftig, Trois Etats du Toi, La Sétérée/ Jacques Clerc, 1992. 8 lithographs.
Olivier Debré, Anatomie du Sourire, Paris, 1993. 38 prints and an original drawing
Dominique Grandmont, Histoires Impossibles, Éditions Dumerchez, Creil, 1994.1 composition on the cover and a drawing on the first 10 impressions
Guy Marester, Notes de Service, préface de Roger Grenier, Rougerie, Mortemart, 1994. 3 original prints
Roger Lesgards, Bracelets d’Orbites, Le Cherche Midi Éditeur, collection Points fixes/ Poésie, Paris, 1994. 3 prints and 1 original drawing for the early impressions
Jean-Jacques Lévêque, Journal d’un Eté, Adam Biro Éditeur, Tours, 1995. 1 pencil drawing, 3 ink and gouache compositions, 2 ink drawings, 3 charcoals
Francis Ponge, Le Soleil lu à la Radio, Rémy Maure Éditeur, Clichy, 1996. Prints
Julien Gracq, Les Eaux Etroites, Les Pharmaciens bibliophiles, Nogent-sur-Marne, 1996 Prints
Bernard Noël, Espace du Sourire, Éditions de la Médiathèque de la Ville du Mans, 1998 Illustrations
Bernard Noël, La Grille du Temps, Editions Unes, Trans-en-Provence, 1995. 1 original ink drawing
G.E. Clancier, Est-ce un Adieu? On a Tenu, Éditions Alain Piroir, Montréal, 1999. Prints by Olivier Debré and Julius Baltazar
Hélène Drion, Battements de Terre, Éditions Simon Blais, Montréal, 1999. 2 prints
L’Ecclésiaste, (translated from Hebrew by Ernest Renan), Paris, Les Amis du Livre, 1999. 7 prints and 2 original lithographs
Patrice Huerre, Perocco le Perroquet, followed by Bernard Noël, André Dimanche Éditions, Marseille, 2009. Illustrations
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