1

PHILIPPE PASQUA

2 3

Opera Gallery lOndOn is pleased tO present an exhibitiOn Of OriGinal artwOrks by the passiOnate

and fascinatinG self-tauGht french artist philippe pasqua.

bOrn in 1965, he has dedicated his life tO paintinG, drawinG and sculpture since the early 1990’s

and has since Gained recOGnitiOn as One Of the mOst siGnificant artists Of his GeneratiOn.

recently he has been exhibited in internatiOnal museums, art fOundatiOns and internatiOnal

art fairs.

Only a mere pOrtiOn Of pasqua’s wOrk is usually expOsed tO the General public and even the

art cOnnOisseurs. therefOre thrOuGh this exhibitiOn we intend tO prOvide a brOader and mOre

cOmplete insiGht intO his art. the shOw will include pasqua’s siGnature larGe palimpsests and

prOvOcative nudes, as well as sensual up clOse and persOnal pOrtraits, alsO intrOducinG a

rare tattOOed vanitas and skull sculptures.

sOmetimes referred tO as “the french francis bacOn”, philippe pasqua’s art has alsO been

cOmpared tO that Of lucien freud and Jenny saville - undOubtedly due tO their unwaverinG

carnal aspect - and his sculptures tO thOse Of damien hirst’s. intrinsically, his turbulent and

sinGular style, described by pierre restany as “spOntaneOus realism”, lies in an ObsessiOn mOst

evident in his skulls; tO GettinG beneath the skin Of the mOdel, capturinG deep intO their sOul’s

“as it flies away”.

the result is, as the art critic david rOsenberG Once wrOte, “an exceptiOnally viOlent physical

shOck (…), a visiOn Of surGical precisiOn”. pasqua dOes nOt represent skin, he says, but flesh.

we hOpe yOur JOurney thrOuGh philippe pasqua’s carnal universe will brinG yOu deep beyOnd the

skin Of humanity and, thrOuGh that, a bit clOser tO yOur Own sOul.

JeaN-DaviD Malat

directOr

Opera Gallery lOndOn

Gilles DyaN

fOunder and chairman

Opera Gallery GrOup

4 5Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

6 7Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

8 9Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

10 11

PHILIPPE PASQUAby cyntHIA fLEUry

“truly, everythiNG withiN us is vaNity, except the hoNest

coNfessioN before GoD of oNe’s vaNity”. for 17th ceNtury

freNch philosopher Jacques-béNiGNe bossuet, such hoNest

coNfessioNs were the very corNerstoNes of faith. philippe

pasqua’s coNfessioNs are artistic. aND this artist’s work

superseDes the vaiN aND the valuable.

as with rolaND barthes’ Mythologies, pasqua has aN

iNNate seNse of how to DebuNk aND celebrate toDay’s

icoNs. coNsiDer his tattooeD ferrari: MechaNics as seNsual

as soft skiN. a MoDerN Maori tribal toteM. a Delirious take oN

the iNteNse, borN iN the artist’s subcoNscious iroNy, playful

aND lustful. but pasqua DoesN’t settle oN the Merely Delirious.

he creates. aND this particular creatioN, a prize that MaNy

iNterNatioNal firMs woulD love to possess, is suspeNDeD

siDeways, vertically eNthroNeD oN aN iMaGiNary roaD.

12 13Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

14 15Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

16 17

18 19Untitled - Mixed media on paper - 110 x 80 cm - 43.3 x 31.5 in.

20 21Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

22 23

it’s also a quasi-spiritual atteMpt to epitoMize the preteNtious.

skulls have beeN DecorateD with butterflies: black skulls,

criMsoN skulls, GlowiNG Mother-of-pearl skulls, eveN tattooeD

skulls reflectiNG off each other iN what seeMs to be a GaMe of

Mirrors. soMewhere betweeN ecclesiastes aND the lady froM

shanghai, betweeN the beGiNNiNG of tiMe aND the DawNiNG of

hollywooD; aN artistic urGe coNNectiNG eterNity’s epheMeral

Dots. those who are faMiliar with philippe pasqua’s work

will uNDerstaND the use of a shruNkeN Jivaro skull… aND have

alreaDy poNDereD his More MoNuMeNtal works of butterflies

GlueD toGether to forM a MaGic sky… so blue… so DreNcheD

iN suNliGht…

these vaNities further represeNt the MeetiNG of the civilizeD

aND the savaGe: a MaJor theMe throuGhout his work. the

artist Now seeMs to focus oN aNiMal skulls that have beeN

tattooeD, lacquereD, eNcrusteD… MaGNifieD to the poiNt of

coNsecratioN. froM huMaN vaNity to the aNiMal… the

arroGaNce of the liviNG; their GlorificatioN as well.

24 25Untitled - Mixed media on paper - 40 x 30 cm - 15.7 x 11.8 in.

26 27Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

28 29Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

30 31

32 33Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

34 35

aND theN there are the portraits. faces have always beeN

iMportaNt iN philippe pasqua’s work: faces aND boDies as the

ubiquitous coMpoNeNts of his persoNal paNtheoN. a holy

house of heroes, their boDies DislocateD aND DisMeMbereD.

DioNysus iN the abseNce of apollo. iN the kiNGDoM of art,

the iNvaliD rules. aND NowaDays, quite Naturally aND

spiritually… it has becoMe the bliND. iN the past, pasqua’s

walls were DecorateD with those sufferiNG froM DowN’s

syNDroMe; the aNesthetizeD. iN the past, his traNsvestites

aND other social outcasts flirteD with his More socially

acceptable aND “happy” subJects.

Now, MeN with eyes DestroyeD reMiND us that tiresias is

alive aND well aND preDictiNG the future. tiresias, the

bliND siGht-seer, with his iNfiNite kNowleDGe of MaNkiND;

preDictiNG the future but Never coNDeMNiNG it. the forMer,

DisMeMbereD boDy has beeN replaceD by a New bruiseD

aND battereD boDy. the ferrari is replaceD by aNother

MachiNe; the revveD up coMbo of MaN aND wheelchair.

36 37Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

38 39Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

40 41Marble tattooed skull - Carrara white marble tattooed, unique piece - H: 60 cm - 23.6 in.

42 43Untitled - Mixed media on paper - 110 x 80 cm - 43.3 x 31.5 in.

44 45Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

46 47Untitled - Mixed media on paper - 40 x 30 cm - 15.7 x 11.8 in.

48 49Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

50 51Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

52 53

always these MachiNes, like the boDies, playiNG a specific

role oN pasqua’s artistic path. we are reMiNDeD of colD blue

operatiNG rooMs; their awe-iNspiriNG techNical frostiNess.

this Now has MorpheD iNto wheelchair Metal claNkiNG oN

caNvas. the busts aND faces of the victiMs… as always…

have beeN subliMeD. because beyoND Mere skulls

aND shruNkeN heaDs, the saMe Gesture, the saMe GeNius

DoMiNates: that of a creator possesseD by the beautiful; the

MaGNificeNtly beautiful… MaGNificeNtly beautiful aND bruiseD.

54 55Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

56 57Untitled - Mixed media on paper - 40 x 30 cm - 15.7 x 11.8 in.

58 59

60 61Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

62 63Untitled - Mixed media on paper - 40 x 30 cm - 15.7 x 11.8 in.

64 65Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

66 67Marble ashtray - Carrara white marble, unique piece - Ø 50 cm – 19.7 in.

68 69Untitled - Mixed media on paper - 40 x 30 cm - 15.7 x 11.8 in.

70 71Untitled - Mixed media on paper laid down on canvas - 200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in.

72 73

74 75

tHE ELUSIvE PHILIPPE PASQUA

Throughout an extraordinary path, Philippe Pasqua has earned recognition as one of the most important artists

of his generation. From the very beginning, his art impressed and knocked down the convictions of whoever ran

alongside him – such as the famous art critic Pierre Restany.

Pasqua’s taste for monumental sized artworks is coupled with a fascination for the most vulnerable things in life:

the humans’ bodies and faces. Sometimes, he paints them with stigmatising differences that he magnifies through

his art: portraits of blind people, transsexuals, and even people with Down syndrome… Disabilities, differences,

obscenity and the sacred are some of his favourite topics. Through them, every canvas is the result of a fight

between what can be shown and tolerated and what is socially unacceptable or repressed.

Pasqua’s painting results in a physical shock portraying an explosive and sharp vision. The profusion and

amplitude of the painter’s artistic gesture demands for monumental sized canvases. Pasqua starts his paintings by

depicting what we could refer to as fetishes, or enigmatic figures that are reminiscent of voodoo. Then, little by little,

he turns his eye to those who surround the figures; he penetrates into the deepest of their intimacy.

Beside the carnal work, Pasqua is well-known for his large drawings. In these, he makes the human face or the

body into some halo, mist, smoke, line or even no more than a vibration. They are no longer flesh and living matter,

but rather sketched outlines and delicate textures. One must also mention the “palimpsests”: works on paper that

result from the combination of serigraphic techniques, printing and paint, on which the painter remakes his pieces

until reaching satisfaction through, adding colours or redesigning parts.

Another major aspect of Philippe Pasqua’s work is his series of “vanitas”. The technique he uses evokes a silvers-

mith from the Middle Age working on a reliquary as well as shaman performing a ritual: he covers human skulls with

leaves of silver or gold. Sometimes he covers them with skin and gets them tattooed. Finally comes the complex

and delicate process of ornamenting the skulls with naturalized butterflies, which either diffuse light and powder

colours through their wings or get lost in the shadows of the skulls’ eye-sockets. At times, Pasqua pours thick

paint on top of the whole thing to submerge it.

For a few years, the artist has been going to Carrara frequently in order to sculpt skulls weighing several tons and

that look like gigantic stars radiating with telluric force. At the foundry, he creates impressive cast-iron bronzes that

are plunged into chrome: whether they are human or animal (he once made a hippo vanitas), the skulls that come

out of this bath look just like mirrors. As such, they sometimes reflect a blinding brightness, and other times disap-

pear completely to donate the entirety surface to whatever is reflected in them. And as soon as one steps closer,

inevitably, it is their own image that they face.

1990 Espace Confluences, Paris, France

1991 Galerie Woo Mang et Partners, Paris, France

1995 Château de Grouchy, Osny, France

Espace Dautzenberg, Brussels, Belgium

The International Center, Detroit, Michigan, USA

1996 Galerie Boulakia, Paris, France

1998 Yvonamor Palix, Mexico City, Mexico

1999 Galerie Lucien Durand, Paris, France

La Machine à eau (The Water machine), Mons Center for Contemporary

Art, Mons, Belgium

2001 Trauma, Galerie Hengevoss-Duerkop-Jensen, Hamburg, Germany

2002 Les Miroirs de l’âme (Mirrors of the soul) - Portraits 1989-2001, Palais

Bénédictine, Fécamp, France, organised with Erick Oge

Bloc portrait, Galerie Hengevoss-Duerkop, Hamburg, Germany

2003 Galerie Hengevoss-Duerkop-Jensen, Hamburg, Germany

Lucille, Galerie RX, Paris, France

2004 Métamorphoses (Metamorphoses), Galerie RX, Paris, France

2005 Centre Culturel, Metz, France

2006 Patrick Painter Gallery, Santa Monica, California, USA

Spike Gallery, New York, USA

2007 Philippe Pasqua - Pulsion, Galerie RX and Galerie Enrico Navarra, Paris, France

2009 Philippe Pasqua, Stiftung Ahlers Pro Arte, Hannover, Germany, organised

by Peter Lipke

Crâne (Skull), Artcurial, Paris, France

Crâne (Skull), Isola di San Servolo, Venice, Italy

2010 Philippe Pasqua, Palimpsestes, œuvres sur papier (Palimpsests, works on

paper), Galerie Laurent Strouk, Paris, France

Philippe Pasqua, Peintures et dessins (Paintings and drawings), Moscow, Russia

Museum of Modern Art, Moscow, Russia, organised by Marc Ivalevitch and

David Rosenberg, partnered with Galerie RX

2011 Philippe Pasqua, Art Paris 2011, Grand Palais, Galerie Laurent Strouk, Paris,

France

SoLo ExHIbItIonS

1990 Maison des Arts, Beausset, France

1992 Salon des Grands et Jeunes d’aujourd’hui (Nowadays’ Great and Young

Art Fair), Paris, France

1994 Aides Association, Espace Cardin, Paris, France

Chaussures d’artistes (Artists’ shoes), Joan Miró Foundation, Barcelona, Spain

1997 3 Visions de l’Art contemporain français (Three views on French contemporary

art), Galerie Martini, Hong Kong

1998 80 artistes autour du Mondial (80 artists around the World Cup), Galerie

Enrico Navarra, Paris, France (with Jeff Koons, Rotella, César, Matta,

Clemente, Nam June Paik among others)

Hygiène (Hygiene), Yvonamor Palix, Mexico City, Mexico (with Orlan, Aziz +

Cucher, Sandy Skoglund, Steve Miller)

Hygiène (Hygiene), Fondation La Source, La Guéroulde, France

Ahrenberg Collection: 50 ans d’histoire de l’art (50 years of Art History),

Fine Art Museum, Mons, Belgium, organised by Erick Oge

1999 Fétiches, fétichismes (Fetishes, fetishisms), Passage de Retz, Paris,

France, organised by Jean-Michel Ribettes

Naço & Friends, Espace Via, Paris, France

2000 Narcisse blessé (Narcisse wounded), Passage de Retz, Paris, France,

organised by Jean-Michel Ribettes

Collages d’hier et d’aujourd’hui (Collages from yesterday and from today),

Galerie Lucien Durand- Le Gaillard, Paris, France

2001 Face Off, Aeroplastics Damasquine Gallery, Brussels, Belgium

2002 Inauguration (Launch), Galerie RX, Paris, France

2004 Beyond Paradise, Galerie RX, Paris, France

Artistes contemporains des galeries du 8e arrondissement (Contemporary

artists from the galleries in Paris’ 8th arrondissement), Paris, France

2005 Quintessence (Quintessence), Galerie RX, Paris, France

Au-delà du corps (Beyond the body), Biennale d’Art Contemporain,

Aixe-sur-Vienne, France

A3, Place Saint-Sulpice, Paris, France, organised by Sophie Actis

2006 Soutine and Modern Art, Cheim and Read Gallery, New York, USA

2010 New Era, Galerie RX, Paris, France

C’est la vie ! Vanités de Caravage à Damien Hirst (It’s life! Vanitas from

Caravage to Damien Hirst), organised by Patrizia Nitti, Artistic Director for

the Maillol Museum, Claudio Strinati, General Director

GroUP ExHIbItIonS

76

134, New Bond Street • London W1S 2TF(T) +44 (0)207 491 2999 • london@operagallery.com • www.operagallery.com