Biography

Bastille (1929-1990)

  BASTILLE was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, on July 14, 1929.

After high school, he studied illustration at the Pratt Institute, New York City, then, on a scholarship, metal engraving at the studio of John Friedlander in Paris, France.

In 1959 he started to work as an illustrator for French fashion magazines and a few years later, began to specialize in billboard illustrations for high-profile architectural projects.

His first homoerotic drawings were published under the name Bal in American physique magazines in the late 1960's. Influenced by the writings of Jean Genet, W. S. Burroughs, and Pierre Guyotat, Bastille developed his style of meticulously rendered gouache paintings around 1980.

Several exhibitions in Amsterdam and New York, as well as numerous publications by Revolt Press, Sweden, introduced his work to an enthusiastic audience.

Bastille died in 1990 of leukemia.

Gouache (Detail) by Bastille

For further information please contact:

The Bastille Archives
c/o Ralf Marsault
149, rue Oberkampf
France - 75011 Paris

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