Place perception: Nathalie Du Pasquier's exploration of vibrancy, geometry and space

French painter Nathalie du Pasquier is more commonly associated with the Memphis group, the design collective which revolutionised design in the 1980s. However, Du Pasquier’s work has developed in a personal, intimate direction since the group’s dismantling in 1987, and moved beyond the playful graphic illustrations she was originally known for.
This month, London’s Pace Gallery celebrates the artist's work with a solo exhibition of her recent paintings, drawings and sculptures. Titled ‘From Time to Time,’ the show explores the ways Du Pasquier has challenged the rules of representations of forms, and arrangement of objects, presenting a body of work that blurs the boundaries between art and design. The exhibit is also the first in a series of three solo exhibitions chronicling Du Pasquier’s work this year, with two shows following at the Camden Arts Centre, London, and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia.
The exhibition features a series of abstract still lifes, studies of space presented as geometric landscapes in a palette of reds, blues and brown, with three-dimensional elements completing the canvas. There is also a small selection of delightful pen and pencil drawings depicting the same scenes, and the exhibition is punctuated by geometric, totem-like sculptures – a medium the artist has explored since 2011.
Untitled, by Nathalie Du Pasquier, 2013.
The paintings range from bold, flat depictions to more delicate representations of space, interspersed by pen drawings that all together create a clear panorama of the artist’s visual world. ‘Through the representation, I learned about looking and transforming what I saw into a painting,’ says Du Pasquier. ‘The abstract work is a different kind of position. I become a builder, an inventor.’
Du Pasquier also worked on the exhibition design, conceived as an overall installation which transforms Pace’s London outpost in a dynamic, colourful environment focused around a bright red room and featuring lines of colour interrupting the white gallery.
‘The paintings in the red room are traditional still-lifes representing abstract constructions, and you do not see them when you enter the exhibition,’ explains the artist. ‘What you see instead, is the recent work where I have composed abstract paintings, done in the last two years, with three-dimensional elements that show the scars of time. What I want to show here is this continuous shift from one position to another. It is in that movement that I recharge the dynamo.'
The exhibition features a series of abstract still lifes, studies of space presented as geometric landscapes in a palette of reds, blues and brown
Du Pasquier also worked on the exhibition design, conceived as an overall installation which transforms Pace’s London outpost in a dynamic, colourful environment focused around a bright red room placed in the middle of the gallery.
The paintings in the exhibition feature spatial compositions that challenge the rules of perspective. Pictured: Untitled, by Nathalie Du Pasquier, 2010.
The gallery environment becomes an artwork in itself, created by Du Pasquier and featuring colourful shelves and blocks of paint on the walls.
The show includes a small selection of delightful pen and pencil drawings, depicting the same geometric scenes that form the common thread of the exhibition.
The space is punctuated by geometric, totem-like sculptures – a medium the artist has explored since 2011.
‘The abstract work is a different kind of position. I become a builder, an inventor,’ says Du Pasquier about her images, including the pen drawings on display.
The paintings are displayed on contrasting surfaces throughout the exhibition.
The works on display include three-dimensional sculptures that complete the spatial arrangements depicted in the oil paintings.
INFORMATION
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
’Nathalie du Pasquier: From Time to Time’ is on view until 29 July at Pace Gallery. For more information, visit the website
ADDRESS
Pace Gallery
6 Burlington Gardens
London W1S 3ET
Rosa Bertoli was born in Udine, Italy, and now lives in London. Since 2014, she has been the Design Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees design content for the print and online editions, as well as special editorial projects. Through her role at Wallpaper*, she has written extensively about all areas of design. Rosa has been speaker and moderator for various design talks and conferences including London Craft Week, Maison & Objet, The Italian Cultural Institute (London), Clippings, Zaha Hadid Design, Kartell and Frieze Art Fair. Rosa has been on judging panels for the Chart Architecture Award, the Dutch Design Awards and the DesignGuild Marks. She has written for numerous English and Italian language publications, and worked as a content and communication consultant for fashion and design brands.
-
Venerable British car-maker AC goes OTT with the high-output, low-slung AC GT SuperSport
Pitched at all-American fans of the original AC Cobra, the GT SuperSport is a fearsome two-seat roadster with more muscle than ever before
-
The dynamic young gallerists reinvigorating America's art scene
'Hugging has replaced air kissing' in this new wave of galleries with craft and community at their core
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the week
While a few of our editors were in Europe for various showcases and launches, others stayed local, uncovering new cuisines, eccentric exhibitions and glorious gardens this side of the Channel
-
Meet the New York-based artists destabilising the boundaries of society
A new show in London presents seven young New York-based artists who are pushing against the borders between refined aesthetics and primal materiality
-
Leila Bartell’s cloudscapes are breezily distorted, a response to an evermore digital world
‘Memory Fields’ is the London-based artist’s solo exhibition at Tristan Hoare Gallery (until 25 July 2025)
-
A bespoke 40m mixed-media dragon is the centrepiece of Glastonbury’s new chill-out area
New for 2025 is Dragon's Tail – a space to offer some calm within Glastonbury’s late-night area with artwork by Edgar Phillips at its heart
-
Emerging artist Kasia Wozniak’s traditional photography techniques make for ethereal images
Wozniak’s photographs, taken with a 19th-century Gandolfi camera, are currently on show at Incubator, London
-
Vincent Van Gogh and Anselm Kiefer are in rich and intimate dialogue at the Royal Academy of Arts
German artist Anselm Kiefer has paid tribute to Van Gogh throughout his career. When their work is viewed together, a rich relationship is revealed
-
Alice Adams, Louise Bourgeois, and Eva Hesse delve into art’s ‘uckiness’ at The Courtauld
New exhibition ‘Abstract Erotic’ (until 14 September 2025) sees artists experiment with the grotesque
-
Get lost in Megan Rooney’s abstract, emotional paintings
The artist finds worlds in yellow and blue at Thaddaeus Ropac London
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the week
It was a jam-packed week for the Wallpaper* staff, entailing furniture, tech and music launches and lots of good food – from afternoon tea to omakase