RAPHAËLLE BENZIMRA

Born in 1999 in Paris
Lives and works in Paris

Portrait Raphaelle Benzimra by Mathieu Vouzelaud

In her figurative works, inspired by miniatures with vibrant colors and meticulous execution, Raphaëlle Benzimra explores the desire for transcendence through the pursuit of glory, solitude, and love. She depicts heroes in complex detailed compositions, addressing themes of battle and spiritual elevation. Drawing on the vocabulary of ancient sacred texts as well as European and Asian medieval and Renaissance painting, she revisits classical poetic works such as The Conference of the Birds and Paradise Lost. Boxing appears as a recurring metaphor, drawing parallels between the world of the ring and Middle Eastern spiritual traditions.

Raphaëlle Benzimra (born in 1999 in Paris) graduated from the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris in 2023. That same year, she received the Bertrand-Demandolx-Dedons Portrait Prize. In 2022, she was selected for the Novembre Painting Prize in Vitry at Galerie Jean Collet. She is the recipient of the Encore! Foundation residency in La Rochelle and presented a duo exhibition with Clarisse Hahn at Galerie Jousse Entreprise in Paris in 2024. Her work is currently on view at MO.CO Panacée in Montpellier in the group exhibition L’Esprit de l’atelier, featuring students from Djamel Tatah’s studio at the École des Beaux-Arts de Paris, on view until May 3, 2026.