Who are you and where do you come from?

I am Jehan-Benjamin, better known under my beach artist pseudonym Jben. I live in La Rochelle, but practice my art on the coast of Royannaise in Charente-maritime, where I am from.

Do you have a motto that influences your life?
I don't really have a motto, but my driving forces are to follow my desires, to have a positive attitude as much as possible, to set myself goals and to get out of my comfort zone from time to time.

What attracted you to Friendly Frenchy?
I really liked the beach and surfing, because the coast is a full part of my life so I quickly got hooked. Then, a few exchanges with the team reinforced me in the idea of carrying out the beach art project with them, because we share the same values.

What is your sound at the moment?
The lastest At The Drive-In ! The re-formation of the band and the release of an album were so unexpected! Fan of the first hour, I was looking forward to it and I'm not disappointed.

What is your best culinary memory? (dish, cook, restaurant...)
It's hard to say, but a memory comes back to me of the best burger, which I think I ate in Irun. Right on the Spanish border in front of the skatepark where I had just done a session.

What is your best holiday memory?
I think it was the island of Formentera, swimming with the fishes in incredibly blue water on white sand... magical!

What is your best spot?
The best spot where I love to practice beach art is on the Grande Côte in Saint-Palais-Sur-Mer. Especially in the middle of the bunkers, it's a really atypical place.

Can you recommend an artist?
I could recommend many, but I choose one of my English counterparts, whom I had the chance to meet and with whom I collaborated: Marc Treanor. One of my best beach artist in my opinion and above all a very beautiful person.

What's the craziest thing you've done?
I think the craziest thing I've done is a very recent project where I had to draw the Intruder on the beach. It's Valérian's ship, which I had to make to promote Luc Besson's film. The level of detail in the fresco was very complex and the tide came to cover the drawing barely 20 minutes after my last rake. I have never had such tighter timing on a project. It's not always easy to play with nature, but everything went well!