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"PASCAL"
Function
+ Art is proud to present new abstract sculpture by Pascal.
The gallery
will also host a reception to meet the artist
on Friday, April 27, Stated simply, Pascal [Pierme], a Frenchman who immigrated to the US in 1997, is in love with wood. Exposed at an early age to the material and process by his grandfather, a noted French sculptor, Pascal has developed his own unique relationship with the material. He says “Some scientists say water has memory. I think wood has memory, too, because of its individuality, its smell, its temperature, its origin. This medium is strong, smart, full of character, unexpected - very feminine.” Indeed, though his works are abstract, certain of his sculptures have a feminine cast, with elegantly swelling contours and subtle curves. Others are fortresslike, or totemic – but all enjoy a simplicity of form which balances geometric abstraction with organic form. There is an undertone of symbolism as well, a hieroglyphic shorthand that hints at other visual languages. Pascal's technique is interactive. Even as he carves and burnishes, he allows the piece to guide him. "Wood has its own intelligence," he says. "It knows many things, and it teaches them to me. In this way, I understand what I want to do with it, so that the final image reflects its innate qualities as well as my own thoughts and feelings” Yet, Pascal’s work is accessible, open to interpretation. Indeed, the artist feels it somewhat incomplete without the viewer’s reaction. He prefers the viewer “see my work more as a sweet interrogation, then as an affirmative message. I don't want to say, "This is what I am doing and you have to understand". Nor do I want to proclaim a rigid and affirmative statement. The spectator is a part of the creation. The title of the sculpture is merely an opening for the imagination.”
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