Dorian Cohen
LSS NYC
“The Promise of Blue”2024 October 18 to November 17
Dorian Cohen
Press release
Long Story Short is proud to present The Promise of Blue, a solo exhibition by Dorian Cohen, on view from October 18 to November 17, 2024, at 54E Henry St, New York, NY.
This exhibition features eleven of Cohen’s paintings, each exploring the intimate and social stories within urban life. His works display layered, interconnected sequences that seamlessly blend moments of quiet reflection with the vibrant energy of the city—a recurring theme in his art, rendered with a sense of both enchantment and subtle playfulness.
Cohen’s mastery of detail, color, and light shines in pieces like Le Jardin de la Marguerite and Le Jardin Albert Kahn. These serene landscapes evoke a sense of peaceful retreat, inviting calm reflection. In his urban scenes, Cohen blends literary and cinematic influences with carefully framed compositions and evocative lighting that build subtle narrative tension. Works such as Au Quai de Jemmapes and the untitled kitchen scene transform everyday moments into reflections on the beauty of the mundane, encouraging viewers to appreciate the simple grace found in daily routines.
In The Promise of Blue, Cohen explores the interplay between landscape and intimacy across a spectrum of themes—some dark, others rejuvenating. Paintings like Mère et Fils (Mother and Son) and the Untitled couple in bed capture profound emotional connections. From the delicate bonds between family members to the solitude of urban life, Cohen’s narratives, expressed through shades of blue, evoke melancholic cinematic moods that reveal the inner lives of his figures. These blues intensify unspoken vulnerabilities, quiet embarrassments, and the ties that bind us, echoing the rain-washed skies over lush, rejuvenated gardens. The Promise of Blue invites us to pause, reflect, and connect with the deeper truths of what it means to be alive.
Dorian Cohen, a young French painter born in 1987, lives and works in Paris. After earning a master’s degree in urban design and engineering, he chose to dedicate himself fully to painting, becoming a completely self-taught artist. His work first gained recognition in 2017 at the 62nd Montrouge Salon. In 2018, he won the Colas Foundation Award, and in 2019, he was nominated for the 10th edition of the Sciences Po Contemporary Art Award. In 2020, he participated in the group show Jeune Création 70 at the Thaddeus Ropac Gallery in Pantin. Since then, his work has been featured in numerous solo exhibitions and art fairs with Paris B Gallery in Paris and LPD’O Gallery in Brussels.
Works
Dorian Cohen
mère et fils (mother and son), 2024
oil on canvas
35 3/8 x 47 1/4 in 90 x 120 cm
Dorian Cohen
le jardin de la Marguerite (the Marguerite’s garden), 2023
oil on canvas
15 x 18 1/8 in 38 x 46 cm
Dorian Cohen
untitled (an undressed couple on the bed, 2024
oil on wood with oak frame
12 1/2 x 16 1/2 in framed 31.8 x 41.8 cm framed
Dorian Cohen
le jardin Albert Kahn (the Albert Kahn's garden), 2024
oil on canvas
47 1/4 x 63 in 120 x 160 cm
Dorian Cohen
untitled (a woman on a yellow bed), 20232024
oil on canvas
10 5/8 x 13 3/4 in 27 x 35 cm
Dorian Cohen
Au Quai de Jemmapes (At the Quai de Jemmapes), 2024
oil on wood with oak frame
12 1/2 x 16 1/2 in framed 31.8 x 41.8 cm framed
Dorian Cohen
untitled (a couple during breakfast), 2024
oil on canvas
35 3/8 x 47 1/4 in 90 x 120 cm
Dorian Cohen
untitled (a man in the bathroom), 20232024
oil on canvas
26 3/4 x 36 1/4 in 68 x 92 cm
Dorian Cohen
L’arbre aux branches coupées (the tree with the cut branches), 2024
12 1/2 x 16 1/2 in framed 31.8 x 41.8 cm framed
oil on wood with oak frame
Dorian Cohen
Ambre et Charlotte pendant la performance Utopie Béton (Ambre and Charlotte during "Concrete Utopia’s" performance), 2024
oil on wood with oak frame
12 1/2 x 16 1/2 in framed 31.8 x 41.8 cm framed
Dorian Cohen
Le jardin du Thabor (the Thabor’s garden), 2024
oil on wood with oak frame
12 1/2 x 16 1/2 in framed 31.8 x 41.8 cm framed