Davis-Dutreix is one of the leaders of the french artistic squat movement. A movement that began in the early 1980s in Paris and whose awkward name is a mix of two words: squat and art.

It serves to differentiate "artistic" squats from "social" squats that usually house immigrant families and the homeless.

In many european countries (Germany, Holland and Switzerland) artistic squats have been legalized since the 1990's and Davis-Dutreix has been actively involved in bringing the same status to France which has at least one squart per major city.

The artist has been involved with several of the most well known squarts in France. The mythical Collectif de la Grange aux Belles marking the beginning of an exciting five-year adventure. The Grange aux Belles collective made a significant impact on the cultural scene in Paris. The space was bustling with activity, offering a restaurant, exhibition hall, concert and theater venues, a free library, a video editing room, a children's play area, a beautiful mosaic, and a rooftop vegetable garden that housed several homeless chickens. In 2000, despite the support of elected officials from the 10th arrondissement town hall, they faced eviction after months of struggle.

Davis-Dutreix also painted for several years at the Diables Bleus a collective in Nice he had met two years earlier and to whom he had passed on all the lessons of his experience at La Grange aux Belles. The Diables Bleus remains a reference for it’s contribution to the community.

In 2004, Davis-Dutreix opened one of the most revered alternative workspaces in Nice called the Pigeonnier. As of 2024 it is in it's 20th year of existance. A true miracle!

Davis-Dutreix lived in Nice from 2001 untill 2024. Besides being part of the city's more traditional "art scene," his artwork is known for his hand painted posters that he glues regularly throughout the city streets. His "action collage" has been his trademark since he was with the art group "Zen Copyright" during the early 1990s in Paris when they glued their posters in Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, New York City etc. During this period, the "action collage" was central to the daily artistic practice of the Zen Copyright, enabling a natural and almost daily social commitment. Every day, the artists took part in the major protests of the day: the right to housing, AIDS, refugees and other social injustices. They fought common battles with personalities such as the Abbé Pierre and François Breteau, a leading ecologist and lawyer involved with the DAL (Right to Housing) who defended squarts on several occasions.

My biography entitled: The Zen Rebel
and the Underground Squart Movement
is available here.