Ich, German for "I": an exhibition title could hardly be shorter, nor more personal. With his first solo exhibition in Düsseldorf, a young artist introduces himself who is already causing a stir at the Kunstakademie.
Layer upon Layer
Intricate, futuristic-looking worlds of forms, biocomputers and fantastic visions of the future define the motifs of Pascal Schwendener's works. Many of his paintings move into abstraction, some have a graphic rigour, and one depicts a cityscape. The closer one gets to his large-format paintings, the more abstract and multi-layered they become, with detail upon detail emerging from the surface. Like superimposed layers of earth, rock and stone, Schwendener stacks levels of imagery in which the world is condensed.
Graffiti, Comics and Classical Painting
Schwendener's background as a graffiti artist is clearly recognisable in his work. At the same time, his paintings show influences from classical painting and comic art. In creating his works, he tries to incorporate every means and technique of painting.
A Shooting Star at the Academy
Four years ago, the 22-year-old Swiss artist was accepted as one of the youngest students at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf; today, he studies under Prof. Peter Doig. His large-format paintings soon attracted attention, and he is considered a shooting star among the academy's students. Pretty Portal now presents his first solo exhibition in Düsseldorf.
"Ich"
Pascal Schwendener
Opening
Friday, 5 March 2010, from 7 pm
Exhibition
5 – 26 March 2010
Pretty Portal
Brunnenstraße 12
40223 Düsseldorf
Note (2026): Pascal Schwendener now works under the name Pascal Sender. After graduating in 2013 as a master student (Meisterschüler) of Peter Doig, he studied at the Royal Academy Schools in London from 2018 to 2022. His work has since been shown by galleries including König Galerie in Berlin and Saatchi Yates in London.
