Thaddaeus Ropac in Paris Marais is presenting the exhibition “Carbon and Air” by the internationally renowned artist Sean Scully. The works on display range from historical drawings from the 1960s to the 1980s to new works from last year. Although Scully is best known for his colorful works, monochromatic works also play an important role in his oeuvre.
In his new series of works, the artist reinterprets well-known compositional motifs from his paintings by depicting them in pencil on paper. These works are characterized by meditative hatching and shading and show his long-standing engagement with geometric grids and blocks. However, the works on paper are by no means preliminary studies or sketches for his paintings, but rather independent works that develop and expand on existing themes and motifs.
The exhibition also includes early figurative drawings from the 1960s, which show a similar approach to light and darkness as his later abstract compositions. These drawings illustrate the roots of Scully’s artistic development.
The exhibition is taking place in parallel with another presentation of Scully’s work at the Hungarian National Gallery in Budapest, which runs until September 1, 2024. This also shows works on paper from the series, three of which were recently added to the National Gallery’s collection.
