What Makes Expressionist Art Powerful?

Sébastien Montel’s creations — oil and mixed media figurative works layered over newspaper collage — reflect the emotional weight and raw energy associated with the expressionist artist tradition. As a French artist working in Los Angeles, he merges bold mark-making with material depth, creating work that lives at the intersection of contemporary art, emotional art, and psychological art.

Emotion Beneath the Surface

Sébastien Montel’s process involves building each piece through layers of newsprint and oil. These materials are more than just a base. They hold tension, memory, and meaning. Torn edges, exposed headlines, and gestural brushwork create surfaces that feel personal and alive. This is mixed media art used to evoke feeling, not just form.

Expressionism as Language

Rather than depict people directly, Sébastien Montel creates figures that feel anonymous and universal. There are no faces to read, only emotion to sense. The paint bleeds and shifts. The space feels quiet, but charged. His art doesn’t explain. It invites. As an expressionist artist, he uses distortion of form and emotionally charged color to convey atmosphere rather than reality. The result is deeply felt emotional art that bypasses logic and moves straight into the viewer’s interior world.

Tradition, Reimagined

Though rooted in oil painting, Sébastien Montel’s work fits naturally within the language of contemporary art. He blends traditional technique with experimental surfaces, using print media, fabric texture, and layered color to build visual and conceptual depth. The collaged newspaper introduces time and place, referencing the present moment while staying open to interpretation.

A Psychological Perspective

With a background in psychology, Sébastien Montel creates work that mirrors internal states more than external appearances. Cool tones, isolated figures, and disrupted forms evoke a quiet intensity. Each painting becomes a mirror — not of a likeness, but of feeling. His approach reflects the essence of psychological art, inviting viewers to sense rather than decode.

See the Work

Sébastien Montel’s paintings reward quiet observation. What may first appear subtle becomes more layered and intense over time. To view the current collection, visit the Collections page and experience the work firsthand.