Continuing through April 1, 2015
The mixed media plaques of French-born artist Pascal are recognizable by their simple yet harmonic arrangement of interlocking wooden shapes. With his new work he adds a twist to that template by asking viewers to see the push-and-pull between static states and movement, as well as between nature and man-made materials. No piece of wood is perfectly cut in straight lines or fits into place without small gaps, which could serve as a metaphor for life’s unpredictability.
In several works Pascal lets large curvilinear shapes of gold-tinted wood sensually bulge into neutral fields or light blue “lakes.” “Blue on Me 2” resembles an aerial landscape shot, where Pascal’s use of ridged wood connotes furrowed fields. In “Sun on Me 2” there is a restrained use of black strips of wood to add depth and contrast. Meanwhile, “The Site 14” uses chunky pieces of gray, lime green and various browns to prompt ideas about curves in architecture, a nod to Frank Gehry’s or Paolo Soleri’s signature structures. Almost every piece has what Pascal calls an “egg,” a small notch of plain wood that almost, but not quite, gets lost in the design. It serves as a symbol for the fertility of ideas waiting to be discovered.
