Sophia Vesna — “Échos Graphite”, first exhibition

By the evening of may 24, 2024, the normally quiet passage dagorno in paris was humming. An easel outside maison picturale held a whimsical poster for échos graphite, and nearly two hundred guests had gathered, spilling from the gallery onto the sidewalk — friends, neighbours and art lovers under the spring sky, glasses in hand, soft music playing. A passing neighbour even bought one of the works, making the evening more of a success still.

Graphite works that reward standing close.

From may 24 to 31, 2024, maison picturale in paris’s 20th arrondissement hosted échos graphite, the first solo exhibition by belarusian artist sophia vesna. The show gathered a series of graphite pencil drawings made in dialogue with gabriel chirouze’s poetry book fabuleuses démangeaisons.

The works explored childhood, melancholy and a surreal tenderness, executed entirely in graphite — a medium vesna describes as natural and familiar from an early age. Several pieces nod to early animation, classic disney films in particular.

The exhibition marked the beginning of vesna’s journey as a visual artist and laid the foundations for her projects in france and beyond. She also makes the hand-drawn covers for several maison mujō releases.