Lustre, an exhibition by London-based painter, Sebastián Espejo (b.1990, Chile), presented alongside works by Pierre Bonnard. As well as Japanese woodblock prints by Hokusai and Hiroshige, artists that both Espejo and Bonnard frequently reference.
Sebastián Espejo (b. 1990) - is a Chilean artist based in London, whose practice centres on painting with a focus on exploring the language of the natural world, still lives and the perception of light. Espejo often directly references the historic work of his influences. He has exhibited internationally across the UK, Europe, Asia, and the Americas; In 2025, he had a residency at Drumlanrig Castle and has been selected for Fugger Kunsthof residency in Augsburg, and after his Interval exhibition, he has two major upcoming solo exhibitions:
Union Pacific in London and
Sun Gallery in Seoul.
In Espejo’s quiet and poetic work, one immediately recalls the techniques, aesthetics and mark making of his historic artist influences, aligning with the ethos of Interval.
Interval is dedicated to bringing together the contemporary with historic artworks that directly connect to each other, be it aesthetics, techniques, sources of inspiration and the subject matter, creating conversations and links between the artists and their practices.
An essay on ‘
Lustre: Sebastián Espejo and Pierre Bonnard’ by
Luis Pérez-Oramas, a Venezuelan art historian and poet who served as Curator of Latin American Art at New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) from 2006 to 2017, will be accompanying the exhibition.
Interval is founded and curated by father and son,
David and Jacob Gryn, dedicated to bringing leading contemporary artists work together with historic artworks, exploring aesthetic dialogues, ideas and connections between the works and their eras. Interval is a recently renovated 1790’s Georgian townhouse at 73 Compton Street, Clerkenwell, London. The inaugural show at Interval was “NOBLEcurve” by LA-based artist Petra Cortright, alongside old master works in collaboration with Sam Fogg and Rafael Valls Gallery.
Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947) Born into a bourgeois family in Fontenay-aux-Roses, near Paris, Bonnard attended law school at his father's insistence, but his true interest lay in art. After failing his law exams, he worked as a clerk in a government office while studying art at the École des Beaux-Arts. In 1888, after competing unsuccessfully in the Prix de Rome competition, he left the École des Beaux-Arts, continuing his art studies at the Académie Julian. There he was introduced to the theories of Paul Gauguin by fellow student Paul Sérusier.
In late 1888 Bonnard, Sérusier, Maurice Denis, Édouard Vuillard and others formed the Nabis, an artistic brotherhood based on Gauguin's theories. In the following years he designed posters and sketches for the symbolist periodical "La Revue Blanche", produced lithographic illustrations for several books published by Ambroise Vollard, and collaborated on the sets for the first production of Alfred Jarry's play "Ubu Roi." Art critics of the period dubbed Bonnard and Vuillard "Intimists," because many of their pictures depicted intimate scenes in interior settings.
Wildenstein & Co. is a private art dealership established in 1875, with an emphasis on Old Masters and Impressionists.
Special thanks to the
Kentoni Collection for the loan of the Katsushika Hokusai and Utagawa Hiroshige, Japanese woodblock prints.
Contact -
jacob@interval-clerkenwell.art for all enquiries.
