In 2006, Partarrieu received the great honour of entry into the BENEZIT, the most important museum reference dictionary for acclaimed artists of all time. His inclusion was a very rare and special achievement for a living artist. Celebrity collectors of Partarrieu's work include Jenson Button and David Suchet. Mattin Laurent Partarrieu is a painter of Basque origin, who dared to break with the traditional ways of the Basque artists who preceded him. His work is a very personal expression, of freedom and of extreme vitality, with the power of audacity. He draws on everyday life, visualising while going about his daily business, and some would probably say while sleeping judging by some of the dream-like fantasy figures he offers to us. They shine with eroticism, and the vibrant optimism of his burning colour palette. He fondly captures life with detail and nostalgia, continually drawing comparisons and confrontations between the two worlds to which he belongs - the idyllic countryside lifestyles of yesterday and the cosmopolitan Parisian lifestyles of today. The weird and wonderful world of cafes, restaurants, bars and bordellos feature often in his work, like references to the bygone era in the great tradition of Toulouse-Lautrec. His exceptional gift for studying, interpreting, designing and painting are handled with the brightest and most expressive form of artistic flair, and allow him to penetrate below the surface of the subjects that he represents. He is able to capture the essence of their soul, and we can experience their emotion and passion in his work. His viewpoint is furtive, he is a voyeur of intimacy, and his subjects are exposed and off guard. He is able to display their inner beings as vulnerable, open souls with nothing to hide. His eye waits patiently for an unveiling, seizing upon the fleeting moments of chemistry and revealing the rich tapestry of scenes of every day life. Partarrieu has a love affair with the female form. Althoug