Galerie Nathalie Obadia is pleased to present AH BON!, the new installation by Guillaume Leblon at its Parisian gallery space. Five new works by the artist continue his exploration of plaster, a material he masters with great finesse. Some of his earlier plaster works were recently featured in the exhibition Parade at the Palais de Tokyo until 2023. In this new series, Guillaume Leblon introduces marine and vegetal forms, creating playful and unexpected encounters.
Although Guillaume Leblon has been living and working in New York for several years, it is in the South of France, in Antibes, where he creates his wall sculptures. The Mediterranean, with its unique history, fauna, and flora, fuels the artist's inspiration. It is here, within this natural and historical setting, that his reflections on fossilization take shape. The incorporation of natural elements, such as fish or plant imprints, attests to this influence. These imprints also evoke other references, such as Fossil Lake in the United States, famous for its fossilized plates, where marine creatures are preserved in a state of near perfection. This market, where natural history and art history intersect, resonates in Guillaume Leblon's work: the issue of preservation and collection overlaps with that of artistic creation.
To create his sculptures, the artist works with fresh plaster. By manipulating it as a malleable paste, he embeds various collected objects, creating surprising dynamics between the rigidity of the plaster and the fluidity of organic forms. Frozen in the material, their movements are suspended forever. At the same time, the sounds of the chosen titles - interjections such as AH BON!, CHUT!, HÉ HÉ!, POUAH!, OUF! - resonate in the space, adding a rhythmic dimension that contrasts with the stillness of the elements.
For the very first time in this series, Guillaume Leblon has chosen to add touches of vibrant oil pastels to certain works. These colorful interventions enhance the dynamic between the shapes and emphasize the organic curves. Sheets of paper have also been incorporated, sometimes covering specific imprints. These additions allow the artist to explore textures, thus enriching the sculptural dimension of his works.
In this way, the artist adopts a sculptural approach that transforms the influences evoked into innovative sculptures, where materials, forms, textures, and colors engage in a subtle dialogue.
