Pierre Bergian
Octavia Art Gallery is pleased to announce Interiorism, a two-person exhibition featuring paintings by Pierre Bergian & Wayne Pate.
Pierre Bergian expresses his fascination for architecture through his paintings by exploring space and structure, making use of the presence of architectural components. His current work depicts a selection of interiors from the pantheon of 20th century design, from Tony Duquette's Dawnridge to Karl Lagerfeld’s Paris apartment. His rooms convey a sense of breathing, pulsing characters, with their richness of personality fully rendered in the artist’s loose, impressionistic brushwork.
Bergian built his career painting primarily empty interiors and emphasizing their architecture and play of light, inviting the viewer to imagine their past and future lives. In contrast, in his present works he depicts rooms as they were lived in. One has the unexpected chance to see him interpret the canon of classic furniture forms, whether tracing the curve of a Louis XV bergère or limning the lacquered folds of a Coromandel screen.
Wayne Pate’s work focuses on rendering objects and interiors in his signature simplistic and sophisticated style. With bold subject matter and fresh color palettes, he often uses pieces of canvas or linen to collage and create layers beneath the paint. In his travels, Pate has amassed a collection of historical objects, which include lebrillos, jugs and water pitchers from Spain, ceramics and terra-cotta pieces from Italy and Greece as well as various vessels from Provence, which often recur throughout the work as repeating shapes. Through subtle shifts in size, format, and contrast, these repeating shapes emerge from the subconscious, giving voice where there is none. Several pieces in this exhibition display a new way of working, executed in an alla prima process to convey the interaction with the subject as more of an observation than an interpretation. Using this technique, the execution is simultaneous, minimal, and efficient.
Bergian studied Archeology at the University of Ghent and has published writings on the topic of design and architecture. He has had solo exhibitions at Purdy Hicks, London; Gallery Laurent de Puybaudet, Paris; Galerie Josine Bokhoven, Amsterdam, and his work in included in the permanent collection at the British Museum in London. In 2022, he was featured in the July issue of World of Interiors magazine and his paintings of Hubert de Givenchy’s interiors during the auction of the legendary fashion designer’s extraordinary collection at Christie’s Paris.
Pate was raised in Texas, moved to New York in the early 1990’s where he established his career and now resides in New Zealand. His work is included in many notable collections including The Carlyle Hotel, NY, the Palm Heights Hotel, Cayman Islands, as well as private collections internationally.
