Arnaud Denis-Longtin is a painter and multidisciplinary artist based in Montreal. Inspired by the international urban culture of tagging and graffiti, Denis-Longtin nonetheless lets the patterns and circumstances of his personal life guide his practice. In this sense, his projects often appear under the alter ego of AORAKI — a kind of alias, shield, and conceptual cloak of invisibility that allows him the audacity and full freedom to dare.

Radically marked by his father’s suicide when he was only 9 years old, Denis-Longtin experiences his practice as a perpetual quest to return to his shattered childhood.

His work stands out for its spontaneous, graphic, expressive style, using spray paint and mixed media to explore themes of personal awakening, loss and hope, innocence and play. Constantly seeking nuance, Denis-Longtin likes to blend contrasting mediums, techniques, and gestures. The surface — whether canvas, fabric, paper, or object — becomes an outlet for his emotions and experiences through the instinctive experimentation of lines and patterns that are simple at first glance.

Inspired by pioneers of the aesthetic rooted in 1980s urban culture such as Haring and Basquiat, Denis-Longtin offers a gestural vocabulary that relies on his own instincts, leading him to assert a personal graphic mythology. Punctuated with references to popular culture, his works come together in deliberate chaos.

Drawn to the self-deprecation and playful nature of contemporary British artist Slawn's work, Denis-Longtin is also informed by the achievements of avant-garde movements, particularly the work of Warhol and Duchamp. What he borrows from them is that unique fusion of art and life, exploring the limits of what constitutes art and its modes of production.

Infused with all these influences and a deep artistic confidence, Denis-Longtin remains stubbornly devoted to his personal style, proving that the spontaneous is no less invested and charged with meaning.